"Netanyahu cancelled a retaliatory strike against Iran after talks with Biden": Following discussions with the White House leader, the Israeli Prime Minister rejected the proposal of his war cabinet.

"The US president persuaded the Israeli PM against an immediate retaliatory strike on Iran after it launched approximately 300 drones and missiles the previous night. According to reports, several members of the Israeli military cabinet advocated for a retaliatory attack, but due to the lack of significant damage and Netanyahu's discussion with Biden, the attack was called off."

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An air defense-capable Israeli warship intercepted a suspicious airborne target that flew into the nation's airspace from the Red Sea, the Israel defense forces said.

"A short while ago, IAF and Israeli Naval forces identified a suspicious aerial target that crossed from the Red Sea into Israeli airspace. An Israeli Navy missile ship successfully intercepted the target using the ‘C-Dome’ Defense System," the IDF said.

The target did not pose a threat, the military added. No sirens were sounded and no injuries or damage were reported.

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Russian Air Defenses shot down two Ukrainian airplane-type drones over the Belgorod region, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

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Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said he called his Russian and UAE counterparts, Sergey Lavrov and Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan to discuss the Iranian attack on Israel.

"I told both of my colleagues that Hungary hoped there was still a chance to avoid an escalation of the situation. But this will only be possible if all global stakeholders behave responsibly, going forward," he said.

Szijjarto added that the phone conversations confirmed that the two countries were also interested in preventing the conflict from spreading across the Middle East.

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❗️ LIVE: UN Security Council holds an emergency meeting over Iran's attack on Israel

Watch the live stream here or follow the link to the Sputnik's website for more details

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Following the escalation between Iran and Israel, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged states to avoid any use of force against other states.

"I remind all Member States that the Charter of the United Nations prohibits the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations," Guterres said at a UNSC emergency meeting.

The secretary-general added that it was vital to avoid any type of escalation which could lead to big confrontations in the Middle East.

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❗️ Russia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzia slammed the UN Security Council for failing to act on the Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria as he urged an end to bloodshed in the Middle East during an emergency UNSC meeting.

"It is regrettable that unlike the meeting today, you did not propose to bring it to brief the Council on the 2nd of April," he said, adding that Russia called an emergency briefing to discuss the Israeli strike against the consular premises in Damascus.

Nebenzia criticized Israel for not complying with the UN Security Council resolutions, which he said was "an obvious disrespect shown to the Council, to all of you who are here in the members seats, and a complete disregard to the decisions made by the Security Council."

"This high level confrontation and bloodshed must be stopped. We think it's urgent for the entire international community to undertake all the efforts necessary to de-escalate the situation," Nebenzia said.

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❗️ Iran's attack on Israel did not happen in a vacuum – it was a response to the shameful inaction of the UN Security Council, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzia said during an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.

"What happened on the night of April 14 did not happen 'in a vacuum.' Iran's steps were a response to the shameful inaction of the United Nations Security Council [and] a response to Israel's blatant attack on Damascus... by no means the first. Syria is constantly being bombed by Israel," Nebenzia said.

On April 3, the US and UK refused to discuss Russia's proposed draft UN Security Council statement on the Israeli strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus. London and Washington then cited the fact that there was no unity in the meeting's assessment of what happened. On Sunday, an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council is taking place in connection with the retaliatory strike that Iran carried out on the territory of Israel. Meanwhile, shortly before that, Iran's mission to the UN said that if the Security Council had condemned the Israeli strike on the Iranian consulate and brought the perpetrators to justice, the need for Iran to punish the Israeli side "could have been eliminated."

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Russia calls for restraint on all sides involved in the incident with Iran's attack on Israel, Russia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzia said at a UN Security Council meeting.

Russia calls on Israel to follow the example of Iran, which has said it does not want further escalation, the Russian ambassador highlighted.

"We note Tehran's signal of unwillingness to further escalate hostilities with Israel. We urge West Jerusalem to follow its example and abandon the practice of provocative forceful actions in the Middle East, fraught with extremely dangerous risks and consequences on the scale of the entire region, already destabilized as a result of the escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli confrontation," Nebenzia emphasized.

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Iran has exercised its right to self-defense after the US, France and Britain prevented the UN Security Council from adopting a statement on Israel's strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Iran's Permanent Representative to the UN Amir Saeed Iravani said at a Security Council meeting.

"The UN has failed in its duty to maintain international peace and security. Russia proposed a press statement to condemn the atrocious act, which was supported by China, Algeria and many members, but it was blocked by the US, Britain and France," Iravani said.

"Faced with such circumstances, the IRI had no choice but to exercise its right to self-defense within the framework of international law," he stressed.

Iran has no intention to engage in conflict with the US, dedicated to de-escalate tensions, avoid expansion of conflict, the Iranian envoy said. But if the US initiates military operation against Iran, Tehran will respond proportionately, Iravani stressed.

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Israel has the legal right to respond to Iran's recent attack on the Jewish state since it "crossed every red line," Israeli Permanent Representative to the United Nations Gilad Erdan said.

"This attack crossed every red line and Israel reserves the legal right to retaliate ... Following such a massive and direct attack on Israel, the entire world, let alone Israel, cannot settle for inaction. We will defend our future," Erdan said at the UN Security Council meeting.

On Saturday night, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched over 300 drones and missiles at Israel in its first-ever direct attack on Israeli territory, according to IDF data. The attack came in response to Israel’s airstrike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1. Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said that Israel had intercepted 99% of the aerial targets fired by Iran, including all drones.

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Israel could respond to the Iranian attack as early as Monday, the Wall Street Journal claims, citing officials from the US and other Western countries.

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Many Palestinians are praising Iran’s retaliatory strikes against Israel, seeing in the attack a rare moment of forceful response to the country’s months-long assault on Gaza.

“For the first time, we saw some rockets that didn’t land in our areas,” said Gaza resident Abu Abdallah, 32. “We have been slaughtered for over six months and no one dared to do anything,” said Majed Abu Hamza, a 52-year-old refugee from Gaza City who is a father of seven.

A flurry of drones and rockets swept across Israeli territory Saturday in an unprecedented direct strike from Iran’s military on Israel. Israel claimed that, with the support of US and UK forces, it was able to intercept the majority of the strikes.

But video on social media appeared to show a significant attack on Israel’s Ramon military airbase in the Negev desert. The Nevatim airbase was also reportedly struck as well as an alleged intelligence site in the occupied Golan Heights.

Iran cited Article 51 of the UN charter to justify its strike as an act of self-defense. The attack by Tehran, which resulted in no deaths, coincided with a 24-hour period during which the Israeli military reportedly killed 43 and wounded 62 across the Gaza Strip.

The precedent of direct Iranian strikes on Israel may prove important, establishing yet another front Tel Aviv must deal with. The refusal of the US to launch strikes against Iran means that Israel will continue to face a steady deterioration of social, military, and economic conditions, ultimately resulting in a strategic defeat according to former US Middle East intelligence analyst Paul Pillar.

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Germany escalates the Donbass conflict as Ukraine admits frontline is deteriorating

Berlin offered to provide Kiev with another US Patriot air defense system as Ukraine’s military chief admitted the country’s position on its eastern front is rapidly deteriorating.

“The situation on the eastern front has significantly worsened in recent days,” said Ukraine armed forces commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky, confirming recent media reports. Syrsky attributed Ukraine’s struggles to Russia’s greater supply of weapons and military technology. He also acknowledged a lack of effective manpower.

Dry weather has granted Russian tanks easy passage over Ukraine’s terrain according to the military chief. From the air, Moscow has made extensive use of retrofitted glide bombs and drone strikes. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has pleaded Western partners to help augment the country’s air defense capacity.

Germany obliged, promising to provide Kiev with a third US Patriot surface-to-air missile system after previously having rejected the request. The pledge follows a familiar pattern of Western countries eventually conceding to Ukrainian requests for armaments after publicly agonizing over the threat of escalation with Moscow.

Western countries have been providing military and financial aid to Kiev since the start of Russia's military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. The Kremlin has consistently warned against continued arms deliveries to Kiev, saying it would lead to further escalation of the conflict. In April 2022, Russia sent a diplomatic note to all NATO countries on the issue of arms supplies to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned that any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russian strikes.

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