Defence minister says Israel has right to defend itself in ‘proportional way’

Defence Minister Bill Blair says Israel has the right to defend itself in “a calibrated and proportional way” following Iran’s ballistic missile attack against Israel on Tuesday.

“I think (retaliation) needs to be carefully considered because that isn’t the purpose of military response from Israel, but rather to diminish Iran’s ability to continue to attack them,” Blair said in an interview with CTV Power Play host Vassy Kapelos on Thursday.

When it comes to the extent of the retaliation, Blair said Israel has a right “to knock those missiles down from the sky” and “target the source of those missiles.”

But when asked by Kapelos if those targets include Iran’s oil infrastructure or nuclear facilities, Blair said “no.”

“Frankly, we’re not endorsing and supporting retaliation against other targets,” Blair said. “Only at those targets that might be necessary for Israel to defend itself against further attack.”

On Thursday, U.S. President Joe Biden told reporters the U.S. is discussing with Israel the possibility of Israeli strikes on Iran’s oil facilities.

“We’re in discussion of that. I think that would be a little, anyway,” Biden said.

Tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militant group, have steadily escalated since the war broke out nearly one year ago between Israel and Hamas, who is also backed by Iran.

Iran’s missile strikes against Israel on Tuesday was retaliation for recent killings of Hezbollah and Hamas leaders.

The latest attacks have sparked concerns of a wider regional war in the Middle East.

Speaking to reporters in Paris on Thursday on the sidelines of the Francophonie Summit, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly reiterated Canada’s call for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

“We absolutely need to make sure that this does not become a full-scale war, and that’s why we need a ceasefire,” Joly said.

Joly also said she spoke to her Israeli counterpart on Thursday, saying she delivered that same message.

You can watch the full interview with Defence Minister Bill Blair at the top of this article.