Israel warns Iran of consequences after Mercer Street attack

Jerusalem, Aug 3 (EFE).- Israel’s prime minister Naftali Bennett on Tuesday warned Iran of the repercussions stemming from its alleged involvement in an attack on a container ship operated by an Israeli firm a few days ago off the coast of Oman.

The incident occurred on 27 July, when a drone allegedly attacked the Japanese-owned Mercer Street vessel operated by a firm owned by Israeli multimillionaire Eyal Ofer, killing two European crew members.

The United States, Israel, the United Kingdom and Romania have blamed Iran for the attack that killed one Briton and one Romanian, but Tehran has denied the accusations.

“Iran knows the price we exact from anyone threatening our security,” Bennett said during a visit with the Israeli military’s Northern Command.

“The Iranians need to understand that they cannot sit peacefully in Tehran and ignite the whole Middle East from there. That is over,” he added.

“We shared intelligence with our friends in the US, Britain and elsewhere,” Bennett said. “There is no doubt as to who was behind the attack, but we provided hard evidence just in case”.

It is the first fatal attack after a series of incidents between Israeli and Iranian interests, which have included allegations of sabotage of Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Israel views Iran as an existential threat, intermittently bombing Iranian or allied militia positions in Syria, and opposes ongoing negotiations to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.

The Gulf Cooperation Council called on the international community to act to put a stop to such “aggressions against navigation” in the oil-rich region.

In a statement, GCC secretary general Nayef Falah Mubarak al-Hajraf condemned “the attack that targeted an oil tanker off the coast of Oman, and called on the international community to assume its responsibilities regarding such attacks”.