Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said he received information about more than 200 Israeli airstrikes against Iranian targets in Syria from John Kerry, who are the time was former US President Barak Obama's secretary of state during nuclear talks with the Islamic republic.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
Zarif's comments were made in an interview in March to the London-based Iranian TV station Iran International and published by the New York Times on Sunday.
The recording in question captured Zarif criticizing Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its dominant role in determining Iranian foreign policy.
"Kerry has to tell me that Israel has attacked you [Iran] 200 times in Syria?" asked Zarif, who complained in the recording that the IRGC had long kept him in the dark on critical matters. "You did not know?" the interviewer asked twice, to which Zarif replied, "No, no."
In the recording, Zarif did not specify when Kerry was supposed to have made the comment.
Kerry currently serves as US President Joe Biden's Special Presidential Envoy for Climate.
The claim sparked a furor on Monday among Republicans, who accused Kerry of betraying Israeli secrets.
Kerry denied the assertion and said on Twitter that reports of alleged Israeli airstrikes in Syria against Iranian targets have long existed in the public domain.
"I can tell you that this story and these allegations are unequivocally false. This never happened – either when I was Secretary of State or since," Mr. Kerry wrote.
I can tell you that this story and these allegations are unequivocally false. This never happened - either when I was Secretary of State or since. https://t.co/BTOdFE1khW
— John Kerry (@JohnKerry) April 26, 2021
Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said that, if real, the remarks would amount to "catastrophic and disqualifying recklessness."
Senator Dan Sullivan (R- Alaska) told US news site Politico: "People are talking about treason – and I don't throw that word around a lot. John Kerry does all kinds of things that I can't stand. But this is the one that broke the camel's back."
He later called on Kerry to resign, saying he was "astonished" that the former secretary of state "would reveal the secrets of one of our most important and enduring allies in the region to an avowed enemy, the largest state sponsor of terrorism."
Nikki Haley, who served as US ambassador to the United Nations under former President Donald Trump, wrote on Twitter that the claim was "disgusting" and accused Kerry of "tipping off Iran."
This is disgusting on many levels. Biden and Kerry have to answer for why Kerry would be tipping off Iran, the number one sponsor of terror, while stabbing one of our greatest partners, Israel, in the back. https://t.co/ZLWnQRZkrG
— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) April 26, 2021
Wisconsin Rep. Mike Gallagher told Politico: "It's unfathomable that any US diplomat, past or present, would leak intelligence to the world's leading sponsors of terrorism at the expense of one of our staunchest allies."
Taking a more moderate approach, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) urged caution about Zarif's reliability.
"I don't know if we should trust that tape or not. If it's true, it's very damaging," Graham said. "I like John Kerry, but that would not be helpful and it would be very problematic if it were true. But let's wait and see how authentic this is."
The timing of the leaked interview is inconvenient for the Tehran regime, given the recent progress between western nations and Iran toward a renewal of the 2015 nuclear deal. A few days ago the sides even announced they had started to exchange drafts, and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani confirmed that negotiations were moving forward.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
It's important to note that Zarif's alleged recording and his comments have not been confirmed by any external source.
Meanwhile, IRGC chief Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami on Monday hinted that Iran was behind the recent rocket fire from the Gaza Strip at Israel in recent days.
Speaking to Beirut-based news outlet Al-Mayadeen, which is affiliated to Hezbollah, he warned that the rocket attacks would happen again and could be "expanded," and that the "evil deeds" committed by Israel in the region in recent days could backfire and expose the country to "real dangers."
