Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said that his country has effectively won the war against Iran, but did not commit to a timeline for its conclusion. The head of Israeli diplomacy added only that the operation would continue until its goals were met, Reuters reported, BTA reported.
At a press conference today in Jerusalem, Saar said that Israel had set itself the goal of eliminating "existential threats", but did not specify by what criteria the government would judge that the goals had been achieved.
"We must exercise patience," he said, on the 18th day of the war, which has so far claimed more than 2,000 lives, most in Iran and Lebanon, but also in Iraq and Israel and the entire Gulf region.
Saar and other Israeli officials have said earlier that the goal is to permanently weaken Tehran's ability to carry out attacks on Israel, while at the same time creating the conditions for the Iranians to overthrow their rulers.
But today Saar acknowledged that only the Iranian people can overthrow the "regime" – which is clearly an admission that such a revolution is not yet in sight.
The Israeli military said it was striking ballistic missile launch sites and facilities for their production and storage. It added that it had also bombed targets related to the Islamic Republic's nuclear program and security forces.
"We have already won", Saar said, describing Iran as dramatically weakened and no longer the same country it was before the February 28 Israeli-American strikes began.
"For us and our neighbors, this is clear, but we will continue until we complete the mission," he said.
Despite Saar's declaration of victory, a statement that echoed one made by US President Donald Trump on March 11, Iran fired multiple missile salvos at Israel on Monday, showing that more than two weeks after the conflict began, Tehran is still capable of carrying out long-range strikes, Reuters notes.
The Trump administration has given mixed signals about the timeline for completing the the war, at times saying it would end soon, even though fighting continues in full force.
Israeli officials have also not committed to a timeline, and the army has said its military plans are designed for hostilities to continue for at least another three weeks, if not longer.
"We are doing very important work," Saar said, shortly after Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced earlier that the army had killed Ali Larijani, the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council.
The Israeli-American war against Iran has caused serious upheavals in the region. Israel is now also fighting the Shiite movement "Hezbollah" in Lebanon, and Tehran is attacking Gulf Arab states.
Iran has also effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil and gas supplies pass, sending energy prices soaring and raising inflation fears.
Several U.S. allies have rejected Trump's calls to send warships to the strait, and some have openly criticized Washington and Israel for not consulting them before launching the war. Saar described Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz as "modern-day piracy" and added that this is a global problem.
Saar's Estonian counterpart, Margus Tsahna, who was also present at the press conference, signaled that his country, a member of the EU and NATO, is willing to participate in a mission under the auspices of the United States to open the strait, but added that Washington must first clarify the goals of such an undertaking and what kind of help it needs.