Iran’s supreme leader said the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah “cannot go unpunished” a day after he was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon.
Khamenei announced five days of mourning in Iran after what he called “the martyrdom of the great Nasrallah” and described him as “a path and a school of thought that will continue.”
Iranian media reported that an Israeli airstrike in Beirut on Friday also killed an Iranian Revolutionary Guards general.
The Israeli military said Mr Nasrallah had “thousands of blood on his hands” and was targeted while he was “directing an impending attack”.
The attack could plunge the wider region into war after nearly a year of cross-border fighting between Israel and Hezbollah sparked by the Oct. 7 attack and war in the Gaza Strip. There are concerns.
What happens next in the Middle East will depend on what Ayatollah Khamenei decides to do.
So far, he and other Iranian officials have refrained from vowing retaliation for a series of harsh and humiliating blows Israel has inflicted on Hezbollah in recent weeks, a move that could potentially push Iran to go to war with its arch-enemy. I think it’s because they don’t want it.
Iran has also not followed through on its threat to avenge the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July, which Iran and Hamas blamed on Israel.
Both Hezbollah and Hamas are designated terrorist organizations by Israel, the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries.
Earlier Saturday, Khamenei called on Muslims to support Hezbollah “with resources and support” but did not promise retaliation for the attack that killed Nasrallah.
“The fate of the region will be decided by the resistance forces, led by Hezbollah,” he said.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported, citing two regional officials, that the supreme leader had been transferred to a safe location inside Iran with heightened security measures. They also said Iran was in constant contact with Hezbollah and other allies to determine next steps, according to the report.
Friday’s Israeli attack destroyed several buildings in Dahiyeh, a southern suburb of Beirut, beneath which the Israeli military said Hezbollah’s central headquarters was located.
Hezbollah confirmed Nasrallah’s death on Saturday. But he did not comment on Israeli claims that Southern Front leader Ali Karaki and other commanders were killed along with Nasrallah.
General Abbas Nilforoshan, deputy commander of operations for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), was also “martyred” in Dahiyeh on Friday, the Revolutionary Guards-affiliated Saberin News reported.
The moderate Didvan news website said he was “assassinated along with Nasrallah” but gave no further details.
However, no official confirmation has been received from Iranian authorities.
Iran uses the Revolutionary Guards to provide much of the funding, training and weapons to Hezbollah, allowing the Shiite Islamic group to build a military force more powerful than the Lebanese army.
According to the United States, the Revolutionary Guards also oversee the coordination of a network of Iranian-allied armed groups across the Middle East, all of which are hostile to the United States and Israel and call themselves the “Axis of Resistance.” Sometimes. In addition to Hezbollah, these include Hamas, Yemen’s Houthis, and Shiite militias in Iraq and Syria.
On Saturday, an air raid siren sounded in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv after the Houthis launched missiles in support of Hezbollah. The Israeli military said the missile had been intercepted.
The Iraqi Islamic Resistance Movement, an umbrella organization for Iraqi militias, also advocated new drone attacks against northern Israel and the occupied Golan Heights.
Sanam Vakil, head of the Middle East program at Chatham House, a UK-based think tank, said Iran’s reputation among its allies has “certainly been tarnished,” adding: “It’s important to turn the tables and save face. We are looking for some way.”
“This could result in a coordinated response by Iraq and the Axis powers, including the Houthis, or a direct attack on Israel itself by Iran,” she said.
“The Iranian government will choose to maintain pressure on Israel, knowing that maintaining or even escalating pressure will invite further attacks.”
