Israeli media cited foreign reports of an Israeli strike on Iran in the absence of official public comment, while Iranian television reports played down the attack - many not even mentioning the "Zionist entity," Iran's term for Israel. Muted responses suggested neither side wanted to escalate the conflict. - REUTERS
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00:00 Both nations told the story of an Israeli strike on Iran in a muted way on Friday,
00:06 pointing to a determination not to escalate the conflict, at least for now.
00:10 No significant damage from the strike on the central Iranian city of Isfahan was reported.
00:16 Iranian television reports played down the event,
00:20 many not even mentioning the Zionist entity, Iran's term for Israel.
00:24 All parts of the country are in complete security, this state broadcaster reports.
00:30 While Israeli media cited reports from the New York Times and the Washington Post,
00:34 which quoted unnamed Israeli officials as confirming Israel was behind the attack.
00:38 The Israeli military and foreign ministries declined comment and there were no immediate
00:43 official statements. Israel is traditionally silent on issues like nuclear weapons and
00:48 intelligence operations, though hard-line security minister Itamar Ben-Gavir
00:53 sent out the one-word message "feeble" on X.
00:57 In Iran, President Ebrahim Raisi chose not to cut short a trip to a central province,
01:02 indicating the country wasn't on high alert.
01:05 A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran did not plan a response now.
01:10 This banner in the capital reads "Israel is more fragile than a spider's web."
01:15 Few seemed alarmed on the streets of Isfahan.
01:17 "Come on, that's not important," this resident tells state TV.
01:24 In Tel Aviv, a similar sense of ease.
01:27 "We're good. You can look around. We're happy here. Not of the attack, but we think the
01:32 situation in the Middle East is complicated. But Israel will always win, and everybody needs to
01:37 know that."
01:38 Uzi Rabi, a professor at Tel Aviv University, said Israel wanted to focus on Gaza and Lebanon.
01:45 "Israel, for the time being, like the United States, like Iran,
01:48 would like actually to end up this chapter and get some leeway for going for Rafah and then to Beirut."
01:58 The apparent attack was the latest in a round of actions set off by the killing of seven
02:03 Iranian officers in a strike on an embassy compound in Damascus on April 1.
02:08 Though Israel has never acknowledged that it was behind the strike,
02:11 it sparked fears of a wider regional conflict spilling over from the war in Gaza.
02:16 Iran launched a wave of hundreds of drones and missiles in response
02:20 that was warded off by the air defences of Israel and its allies.
02:24 G7 foreign ministers issued a statement on Friday calling for calm.