Iran has decided to attack Israel, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said, as the West ramps up diplomatic efforts to avoid any further military action that could spark an outright war between the Islamic Republic and the Jewish state.
Iran's message was delivered to Israel through Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, who called Katz directly to explain that he had received this information from acting Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri.
"Iran has informed us that it intends to attack Israel," Katz said, adding that "the world must demand a price from Iran for every aggressive action it carries out."
In a conversation Bagheri held with his Bahraini counterpart Abdullatif bin Rashid Alzayani, he spoke of Iran's determination to respond to the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last week.
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attack, but is widely believed to be behind it.
"Silence over the growing evil actions of the Zionist regime will be harmful to regional stability, adding that indifference to the latest moves is tantamount to giving the regime a boost," he said.
The United States believes an Iranian attack could occur in the next 48 hours.