Katz‘s initial comments, made after Iran‘s eighth strike on the occupied territories since the war‘s outbreak, declared that the „residents of Tehran“ would „pay the price“ for the successful offensive. The Hebrew statement, seemingly aimed at Israelis who had been spending hours in bomb shelters, soon circulated on Persian social media. This further undermined Israel‘s hopes of inciting coordinated unrest among Iranians, forcing Katz to take to X again, this time to „clarify“ his position in English.

„I wish to clarify the obvious: there is no intention to physically harm the residents of Tehran,“ he wrote.