Israeli defense minister Benny Gantz
Israeli defense minister Benny Gantz said on Thursday Iran gives millions of dollars annually to the Islamic Jihad so that it can attack Israel.
In a joint press conference with his Cypriot counterpart Charalambos Petrides, Gantz said the financial support is in addition to the transfer of technical intelligence for the constitution of military bases in Gaza from which to launch attacks against civilian centers in southern Israel.
"Israel will continue to act against Iran's emissaries together with our partners. We will continue to work together for the stability of the entire region," he added.
After the launch of Operation Breaking Dawn against targets in Gaza on August 5, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said that Islamic Jihad is an Iranian proxy that wants to destroy Israel, noting that Israel has a zero-tolerance policy for any attempted attacks from Gaza. The head of Islamic Jihad -- a militant outfit designated a terrorist organization by the US, EU, and UK -- was in Tehran when during the three-day operation.
Ziyad al-Nakhalah held meeting with several senior Iranian officials in Tehran including Supreme Leader's adviser Ali Akbar Velayati, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, and Kamal Kharrazi, the head of Iran's Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, as well as President Ebrahim Raisi and a number of high-ranking IRGC commander.
Tehran condemned the Israeli airstrikes on Gaza, vowed continued support and called for closer ties between the Islamic Republic and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.