Netanyahu Warns Iran Over Potential Economic Consequences of Future Attacks

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has issued a stark warning to Iran, emphasizing that any future attacks on Israel would come at a massive cost to the Iranian economy. In a video addressed directly to the Iranian people, Netanyahu described the financial consequences of Iran’s missile strike on Israel in October, which he claimed cost Iran $2.3 billion, money that could have been better spent on improving the lives of ordinary Iranians.

Released on November 12 with Farsi subtitles, Netanyahu’s message to the Iranian people highlighted that the Iranian regime’s obsession with Israel’s destruction is driven more by its fear of its own people than any true threat posed by Israel. Netanyahu further pointed out that both the people of Israel and the Iranian population do not desire war, but warned that Israel would respond harshly if Iran launched another attack.

The Israeli Prime Minister's video may serve as a warning to Iran that any further escalation could lead to devastating economic repercussions. Analysts have suggested that Israel may be preparing to hit Iran’s economy where it hurts if tensions continue to rise. There has been no immediate response from Iran to Netanyahu’s message.

U.S. Expert Warns of Iran’s Chemical Weapons Development Using Synthetic Opioids

In a related development, a U.S. expert has issued a chilling warning that Iran may be developing chemical weapons using synthetic opioids, such as fentanyl, which could incapacitate both soldiers and civilians. Matthew Levitt, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) think tank, raised alarms in an article for the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point, stressing that Iran's potential weaponization of pharmaceutical-based agents (PBAs) represents an escalating threat to both regional and global security.

Levitt explained that Iran’s chemical weapons program involves creating agents derived from pharmaceutical compounds that, when weaponized, can cause severe neurological damage and even death. These agents could potentially be used in conflicts or provided to Iran’s proxy forces, including Hezbollah, for strategic purposes. The weaponized agents could be deployed in grenades or artillery, enabling Hezbollah and other groups to incapacitate large numbers of people with minimal physical harm—making it a potentially devastating tool for both military and civilian targets.

The warning comes as reports indicate that Iran has breached the Chemical Weapons Convention, which it signed in 1997, committing not to produce or use toxic chemicals. Levitt’s article underscores that Iran has been researching narcotics for chemical agents since at least 2005, in violation of international norms, and this research has been linked to several recent poisoning incidents within Iran.

Concerns have grown that these chemical weapons could be used not only in regional conflicts but also in domestic operations, including crowd control, as Iran has previously claimed. The U.S. and its allies have raised consistent concerns over Iran’s chemical weapons development, with international bodies like the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) expressing alarm at Iran’s growing chemical weapons capabilities.