TEHERAN/JERUSALEM - Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said the recent unrest and "bitter events" in his country were part of a joint US-Israeli initiative aimed at exploiting the challenging conditions faced by the Iranian people.

In a Sunday meeting with visiting Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein in the Iranian capital, he elaborated on the recent economic protests in his country that were gradually turned violent by individuals designated by Iran as "US and Israeli-affiliated terrorists and rioters," according to a statement published on the website of his office.

Pezeshkian slammed the United States and Israel for their "destabilizing and destructive" role in West Asia, accusing them of seeking to sow division among Muslim countries.

He emphasized that despite extensive political, economic, and media pressure aimed at undermining security and stability in Iran and the region, Iran's domestic approach has focused on "maintaining the unity and solidarity among all parties, ethnicities and religions."

The Iranian president added that his country's approach towards the Islamic and neighboring states has been centered on promoting development and improving relations in all areas "through removing the walls of distrust and difference."

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He also called for greater unity among the Muslim world to prevent foreign powers from threatening Islamic states.

The "deep emotional and heartfelt" bonds between the Iranian and Iraqi nations constitute the root and foundation of the two countries' long-standing relations, Pezeshkian said, emphasizing that the "strong and historical" bilateral ties will continue.

Hussein noted that "Iraq and Iran have a deep history."

Iraqi officials constantly monitored the recent events in Iran with special sensitivity, he said, adding that Iraq considers Iran's security as that of its own and the entire region and will not accept any attempt to harm it.

Protests have erupted across several Iranian cities since late December, sparked by the sharp depreciation of the rial and sweeping reforms to government subsidies. Initially peaceful, the protests gradually became violent, resulting in casualties and damage to public properties. 

'Unprecedented military response'

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a sharp warning to Iran here on Monday, vowing an unprecedented military response should Teheran attack Israel.

"If it makes a mistake and attacks us, we will act with a force it has not yet known," Netanyahu told a session of the Knesset (parliament).

He said Israel is "closely" monitoring Iran, warning that "no one can predict what the future holds for Iran, but it will not return to what it once was," implying irreversible consequences for Teheran in any conflict.

The remarks came as the United States is reportedly moving the nuclear-powered USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group toward the Middle East amid rising tensions with Iran.

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'Hostile positions'

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Sunday the positions adopted by some European states over the past few days on Iran's recent unrest are in no way acceptable and justifiable.

Speaking to reporters at a weekly press conference, he elaborated on the ministry's assessment of some European countries' hostile positions -- especially at a Thursday UN Security Council meeting -- towards Iran, which he said were adopted while turning a blind eye to the realities on the ground.

Over 3,700 wounded

A senior Iranian lawmaker said on Monday more than 3,700 people were injured during the recent "riots" in the country, according to the semi-official Mehr news agency.

Chairman of the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Ebrahim Azizi made the remarks at a press conference in Teheran, saying the figure was not fixed and could change.

The lawmaker added that more than 2,221 vehicles and pieces of equipment belonging to Iran's police and the voluntary Basij force of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps were damaged during the unrest, noting that more than 250 schools, 300 mosques, and 90 seminaries also sustained damage.

He said a number of the security and military forces as well as civilians were killed in the incidents, but did not provide the death toll.