Russia is forced to put into practice the issue of transferring the Geneva discussions on Transcaucasia from Switzerland to another country – Russian Foreign Ministry

The ministry noted that a number of countries have already agreed to provide their territory for meetings of the Geneva discussions on Transcaucasia.

The Geneva Discussions on Transcaucasia are an international forum for ensuring predictability of the situation in the region, as well as maintaining dialogue between Abkhazia and South Ossetia on the one hand with Georgia on the other.

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Israeli planes struck near the city of Baalbek in eastern Lebanon, ambulances are heading to the scene — Sputnik source

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Zelensky could sign a new bill on tightening mobilization in Ukraine within two weeks, with some of the norms entering into force immediately after the publication of the document, and some in a month, First Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Oleksandr Kornienko said.

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Israeli warplanes have been spotted in the sky over cities on the Mediterranean coast in northern Lebanon, including Byblos, Sputnik’s correspondent reports

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The Russian Foreign Ministry has called for restraint in connection with the attack on Israeli territory.

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❗️Key statements by the Russian Foreign Ministry regarding Iran's attack on Israel:

▪️The Russian Foreign Ministry has called for restraint in connection with the attack on Israeli territory.

▪️According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, the attack was carried out within the framework of the right to self-defense in accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter in response to attacks on Iranian facilities in the region, including a strike on the building of the consular department of the Iranian Embassy in Damascus on April 1, which Russia strongly condemned.

▪️ Due to the position of the Western members of the UN Security Council, it was unable to adequately react to the attack on the Iranian consular mission.

▪️Russia has repeatedly warned that the numerous unresolved crises in the Middle East, primarily in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict zone, which are often fueled by irresponsible and provocative actions, will lead to an increase of tensions.

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Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran, Iran, has canceled flights until Monday morning, ISNA news agency reports.

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If Israel attacks, it will be attacked by Iran in response – IRGC Commander

"If the Zionist regime anywhere attacks our interests, our property, our political figures or our citizens, we will attack it in response from the Islamic Republic of Iran," Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Hossein Salami said.

Salami added that the operation was "a great success."

"The targets were very precise and we conducted a limited operation corresponding to the scale of the atrocities committed by the Zionist regime," he claimed.

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NATO has condemned Iran's attack on Israel and called for restraint so the conflict in the Middle East does not get out of control.

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On Sunday, the government will decide on a retaliatory strike in connection with the Iranian attack, an Israeli army spokesman said.

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Ritter: Israel believed that it could launch a strike against Iran and suffer no consequence - that is no longer the case.

"This is deterrence. This means that in the future, if either Israel or the United States plan on carrying out an action against Iran, they have to weigh in the consequences of their actions knowing that Iran has the capacity to reach out and touch any place, any spot, any target in the region in Israel or out of Israel, and there's nothing anybody could do to stop that. This is why president Biden has been on the phone with Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, telling him, 'Do not retaliate,'" Scott Ritter, ex-US Marine Corps intelligence officer, told Sputnik.

Sunday morning Mohammad Bagheri, the head of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, said that operation 'True Promise' against Israel has been completed.

"Operation 'True Promise' was an extraordinarily successful operation, not only for Iran, but indeed for the world, because Iranian deterrence now is a reality that can hold Israel and the United States in check," Ritter concluded.

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❗️In the Kharkov and Sumy regions, Russian troops struck Ukrainian manpower and equipment: Ukrainian forces lost up to 60 servicemen and six units of equipment.

🇷🇺🪖 More statements from the Russian MoD's daily briefing on the progress of the special military op in Ukraine:

▪️ In the Kupyansk area, Ukrainian losses amounted to up to 30 soldiers;

▪️In the DPR, the Ukrainian Armed Forces lost up to 470 servicemen. In the southern DPR, Ukraine lost up to 150 soldiers;

▪️ In the Avdeyevka area, Russian forces improved their tactical position, and Ukrainian losses amounted to up to 460 soldiers;

▪️Russian air defenses destroyed three Hammer and JDAM guided bombs, one HIMARS missile, and 41 Ukrainian drones.

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🇮🇱 The Israeli army said that, in response to the attacks, it targeted a large Hezbollah weapons manufacturing facility "deep inside" Lebanese territory.

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The IDF published a video of its strikes on Hezbollah's weapons manufacturing facility in response to the launches that were fired toward northern Israel overnight.

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How much does Israel's defense cost?

Repelling Iran's missile attack cost Israel $1.3 billion, General Ram Aminach, economic advisor to the former chief of staff, said.

While Iran spent "only 10% of the specified amount on the night attack," Aminach expressed the opinion that Israel needs to increase its defense budget.

Former chief economist of the Ministry of Finance Yoel Neve, in turn, did not support that opinion.

"The burden of defense spending can significantly damage the country's growth potential," he noted.

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Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, in response to a call by the Israeli ambassador to Moscow, Simona Halperin, to condemn the Iranian strike, noted that Israel has not condemned Ukrainian strikes on Russia.

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French forces in the Middle East helped track and detect Iranian drones and missiles aimed at Israel, CNN reported, citing a source

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At least 44 Mossad operatives were killed at Nevatim Air Base – media

The news agency Iran in Arabic reported that the Nevatim Air Base, in addition to Israeli F-35 aircraft, also serves as a hangar for Mossad’s spy planes. A large number of intelligence officers and senior Mossad operatives were permanently present at the base.

According to the news agency, at least 44 officers were killed.

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🇮🇷 Iran launched 7 hypersonic missiles during the attack on Israel, none of them were intercepted, Iranian media reports.

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An anti-Israel protest is taking place in the Polish capital Warsaw, with demonstrators moving towards the Israeli Embassy

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Israel will respond to Iran's attack at an appropriate time and in an appropriate manner, War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz said

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