Iranian Parliament Official Warns Israel Must Be “Punished” After Beirut Strike

Ibrahim Rezaei, spokesman for the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, responded on Sunday to Israeli airstrikes in Beirut’s Dahiyeh district with a sharp warning to Israel. In a post on X, he said there must be no “miscalculation” in dealing with Israel and argued that even if a deal or understanding is reached in the region, the path to it runs through what he called “punishing the Zionist regime.”

Rezaei said, “It is forbidden to fall into a miscalculation. Even if you seek to reach an agreement or some understandings, the way to that goes through punishing the Zionist regime.” He added that if Israel is not restrained, any understanding could quickly collapse.

His remarks came shortly after the IDF struck Hezbollah targets in Beirut after rocket fire toward Israel and continued violations by the group. The Israeli political leadership had already stated about a week earlier that any fire from Lebanese territory would be met with strikes on targets in the Lebanese capital.

The comments are being read in Israel as another possible signal of an Iranian or proxy response, especially after recent threats from senior figures in Tehran that an Israeli strike in Beirut could trigger further escalation. As of now, no additional official Iranian announcement has detailed practical steps in response to the attack.