Amid the ongoing escalation in the Middle East, Iran on Saturday was hit by heavy cyberattacks that disrupted nearly all three branches of government and also targeted its nuclear facilities. This attack came as Israel vowed a strong response to Iran’s 200-missile barrage on October 1 as the West Asia tensions continue to spike amid the Gaza conflict which has now spread to Lebanon.
“Nearly all three branches of Iran’s government – the judiciary, the legislature, and the executive branch – have been hit by heavy cyberattacks, and their information was stolen,” said Firouzabadi, the ex-secretary of Iran’s Supreme Council of Cyberspace, was quoted as saying by the Iran International. “Our nuclear facilities have also been targeted by cyberattacks, as well as networks like fuel distribution, municipal networks, transportation networks, ports, and similar sectors. These are just part of a long list of various areas across the country that have been attacked,” he added.
US Sanctions On Petroleum Sector
These cyberattacks also came as the United States expanded sanctions against Iran’s petroleum and petrochemical sectors on Friday in response to an Iranian missile attack on Israel. The US move adds petroleum and petrochemicals to an executive order that targets key sectors of Iran’s economy with the aim of denying the government funds to support its nuclear and missile programs.
Earlier, Iran said it is “fully prepared to defend its sovereignty” if its arch-foe Israel attacks as it has threatened to do in response to a barrage of about 200 missiles. The Islamic Republic launched the missiles at Israel on October 1 in retaliation for the killing of two of its closest allies, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, along with an Iranian general.
‘Deadly, precise and surprising’
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant promised this week that his country’s response would be “deadly, precise and surprising”. In an address to the UN Security Council on Thursday, Iran’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, said the Islamic Republic “stands fully prepared to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity against any aggression targeting its vital interests and security”.
Iran, he said, was not seeking “war or escalation” but would exercise its “inherent right to self-defence fully in line with international law and will notify the Security Council of its legitimate response”. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said meanwhile in an interview with Al Jazeera Arabic on Thursday that “we do not want a war”, but “we are not afraid of it, and we will be ready for any scenario”.
War between Israel and Hamas
The warnings come against the backdrop of a war between Israel and Iran-allied Palestinian militant group Hamas that has been raging for more than a year and has expanded to include Lebanon in recent weeks. Hezbollah is preparing for a long war of attrition in south Lebanon, after Israel wiped out its top leadership, with a new military command directing rocket fire and the ground conflict, two sources familiar with its operations said.
Hezbollah has been diminished by three weeks of devastating Israeli blows – most notably the killing of its leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. Friends and foes alike are now watching how effectively it resists Israeli troops that have crossed into Lebanon with the stated aim of driving it away from the border. The Iran-backed group still has a considerable stockpile of weapons, including its most powerful precision missiles which it has yet to use, four sources familiar with its operations said, despite waves of airstrikes that Israel says has severely depleted its arsenal.
(With agency inputs)
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