IRCG Chief Urges Regional Countries To End Ties With Israel

The commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has urged states around the Persian Gulf to end their dealings with Israel, alleging that the country’s activities in the region are a cause of insecurity.

“Unfortunately, some countries on the southern side of the Persian Gulf have established political and security relations with [Israel], which poses a serious threat to the security of the region and these states themselves”, Major General Hossein Salami said on Wednesday during a visit to the southern island of Abu Musa, near the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

“We explicitly declare and warn that the continuation of such relations is not acceptable at all,” Salami said, speaking alongside IRCG Navy commander Admiral Alireza Tangsiri.

Salami also praised the combat power of IRGC units, especially those deployed to Iran’s islands in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman, as well as the capabilities of the Revolution Guards’ naval forces in the fields of drones, missiles, electronic warfare and submarines, adding that these forces can show timely and effective response to any threats.

The IRCG commander’s comments follow recent media reports that an air defense pact between Israel and friendly regional countries is in the works to confront threats posed by Iranian drones and missiles.

The reports came in the wake of a two-day meeting on March 27-28, dubbed the “Negev Summit”, which brought together the top diplomats of Israel, the United States, and four Sunni Arab states, including the Persian Gulf countries of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

Wrapping-up the landmark gathering in Israel, Israeli foreign minister Yair Lapid announced the participants had decided to make the summit into a “permanent forum” that he said would help confront “our common enemies, first and foremost Iran and its proxies”.