Iran will pay 'very heavy price' for targeting Israeli civilians: Israeli PM Netanyahu
Jerusalem, Jun 15 (PTI): Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday warned that Iran will pay a “very heavy price” for targeting civilians in Israel.
He made the comments while visiting the site of an early morning Iranian missile strike in the city of Bat Yam, close to Tel Aviv. At least seven people were killed and several dozen others wounded in the strike.
“Iran will pay a very heavy price for the murder of civilians - women, children — that it carried out deliberately. We will achieve our objectives, and we will strike them with overwhelming force," the Prime Minister's Office quoted Netanyahu as saying.
Israel launched Operation Rising Lion early Friday, targeting Iran's nuclear, missile and military infrastructure. Iran later launched retaliatory strikes on Israel, which has threatened even greater force after some Iranian missiles struck buildings in the heart of the country.
In a separate incident, four people were killed in the northern Arab town of Tamra, raising the death toll to 14 since Israel launched the operation, which it says aims to deny Iran achieving nuclear capabilities and to foil its missile development programme.
Several dozen people were injured in an attack on the city of Rehovot, but there were no fatalities.
“We are here because we are in an existential battle — one that is now clear to every citizen of Israel. Think about what would happen if Iran had a nuclear weapon to drop on Israel’s cities,” Netanyahu said.
“Think about what would happen if Iran had 20,000 missiles like this one — not one, but 20,000. That is an existential threat to Israel. That is why we launched a war of salvation against a double threat of annihilation, and we are doing so with strength. Our soldiers, our pilots, are above the skies of Iran,” he added.
He advised citizens to follow the instructions of the Home Front Command during Iranian missile attacks.
Meanwhile, at a press conference, Israel Defence Forces (IDF) spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said that more Iranian ballistic missile attacks on Israel are expected in the coming days.
“Challenging days are ahead. There will be more launches and impacts in the coming days,” Defrin said, adding that the Israeli Air Force is “not stopping striking (in Iran) for a moment”.
“Even at this hour, we are striking dozens of targets in Tehran. We are deepening the damage to (Iran's) nuclear programme and military capabilities, to disrupt and reduce the risk to the home front,” the IDF spokesperson said.
In a post on X, the IDF said that contrary to Iran, which it said is targeting the civilian population, Israel has been trying not to harm the Iranian population.
"This is the message we spread to Iranian citizens. While Iran chooses to strike without warning, we choose to warn innocent people even if it means giving up the element of surprise. We warn them, in Persian, across many channels," the IDF wrote. "Because human life comes first to us. That’s the difference between us and our enemy," it added.
Official sources in Israel said that 270 missiles have been fired by Iran since Friday, impacting 22 sites, killing 13 people, including three minors and 10 adults, and injuring 390 people.
Among the injured, nine are in serious condition, 30 in moderate condition and 351 have minor injuries, they said.
Iran has also fired more than a hundred drones since Israel launched Operation Rising Lion on June 13.
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Railway exams postponed after pro-Kannada activists protests over exclusion of language
Bengaluru (PTI): South Western Railway on Tuesday abruptly postponed its recruitment examinations following protests by pro-Kannada organisations over the conduct of tests only in English and Hindi.
Members of the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike gathered outside exam centres in Bengaluru and Hubballi, demanding that the exams also be held in Kannada.
"The recruitment examinations have been postponed due to the protests and next dates would be announced later," a SWR official said.
Officials said the South Western Railway (SWR) had scheduled promotion examinations on Tuesday to fill 295 posts, including 194 posts of goods train manager.
Following the development, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah urged the Union Government to ensure that Kannada-speaking candidates are not subjected to "such injustice".
He also sought the intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to issue necessary directions in this regard, demanding that the cancelled examinations be conducted at the earliest, with provision to write them in Kannada.
The morning exams were postponed after members of the pro-Kannada organisation staged protests near the exam centres in parts of the state including Bengaluru. The exams scheduled for the afternoon hours have also been postponed, he said.
Karnataka Rakshana Vedike has been opposing the move to drop the local language from the recruitment exams, stating it could prevent local candidates from appearing.
Welcoming the postponement, the organisation warned it would resume protests if the exams are held again without meeting its demands.
"Every state language must be respected. Candidates must be allowed to write exams in their respective state languages...Kannada in Karnataka, Tamil in Tamil Nadu, Marathi in Maharashtra, so that local candidates can have better opportunities to serve in higher positions," Hanumanthappa Ambigeri, a member of Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, told reporters in Hubballi.
Taking to social media platform 'X', Siddaramaiah said the Railway Department has abruptly cancelled the promotion examinations scheduled to be held today for 194 Goods Train Manager posts in South Western Railway and 101 LDCE posts in the Hubballi division, placing Kannada employees in uncertainty.
This follows strong opposition from Kannadigas and Kannada organisations, he said.
Siddaramaiah pointed out that thousands of Kannada-speaking employees had already raised objections over the lack of provision to write the examination in the local language.
Despite peaceful protests, he alleged that the department failed to respond in time, cancelling the examinations at the last moment and leading to the present confusion.
"Had the department acted early and allowed the examination in Kannada, this situation could have been avoided. Instead, its indifferent approach and last-minute cancellation after protests intensified is condemnable," Siddaramaiah said.
The chief minister claimed that this is not the first instance, nor will it be the last, of Kannadigas facing injustice in central government examinations.
"Due to the continued imposition of Hindi in recruitment processes across central departments, Kannada candidates have long been subjected to unfair treatment," he alleged.
"It is unfortunate that this has occurred even when (state MP) V Somanna serves as Minister of State for Railways. I had expected that he would stand for Kannadigas and address this injustice, but that expectation has not been fulfilled. He must move beyond words and act in the interest of Karnataka," he said.
Siddaramaiah said that Kannadigas have already experienced the adverse impact of the Centre's preference for Hindi and neglect of regional languages. Restricting central examinations to Hindi and English is unacceptable, he said.
"India is a union of states formed on linguistic foundations. We do not oppose Hindi, but we will not accept its imposition over Kannada. Kannadigas are not seeking employment or promotion as charity, but asserting their right in the language they were educated in," he added.
