Iran does not seek to escalate regional tensions but believes it must punish Israel to prevent further instability, the country’s foreign ministry spokesman said.

At the same time, the head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened Israel again today, warning that it was “digging its own grave” with its actions in the war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Hossein Salami, speaking to reporters at an event, said that “when they receive a blow, they should see that they are making mistakes. They make mistakes all the time,” and added “They will see the result of their mistake. They will see when, how and where they will get their answer.”

Salami also referred to Iran’s suspicions of one Israeli assassination program which targets Tehran’s nuclear scientists amid concerns over the country’s atomic program.

“Israel is the cradle of terrorism and was created by murder,” he claims. “They think they can kill another country’s nuclear scientists and block that country’s path to peaceful nuclear technology. They think that by killing the leader of a resistance group… in another country it will give them more time to live” and concluded “they are just digging their own grave”.