DUBAI: Senior Iranian officials will meet with representatives of Iran's allies from Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen on Thursday to discuss possible retaliation against Israel after the killing of a Hamas leader in Tehran. , five sources told Reuters.
The region faces the threat of conflict between Israel, Iran and their proxies after the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on Wednesday and the killing of a Hezbollah commander on Tuesday in a strike. Israel on the border of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon.
Representatives of Iran-allied Palestinians Hamas and Islamic Jihad, as well as the Tehran-backed Houthi movement in Yemen, Lebanon's Hezbollah and Iraqi opposition groups will attend the meeting in Tehran, sources said. , who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue. .
“Iran and members of the opposition will make a thorough assessment after the meeting in Tehran to find the best and most effective way to retaliate against the Zionist regime (Israel),” a senior Iranian official said. one, have direct knowledge of the encounter.
Another Iranian official said Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and senior members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard will attend.
“We are currently considering how Iran and the opposition parties will respond … It will certainly happen and the Zionist regime (Israel) will undoubtedly regret it,” said General Mohammad Baqeri, head of Iranian military personnel, on state television on Thursday.
Iran and Hamas accused Israel of carrying out the strike that killed Haniyeh hours after he attended the inauguration of Iran's new president in Tehran on Wednesday.
But Israeli officials did not claim responsibility for the attack, which sparked threats of retaliation against Israel and raised further concerns that the Israeli-Hamas conflict in Gaza has turned into an all-out war in the Middle East.
Israeli Air Force Chief Tomer Bar, speaking at a military graduation ceremony in Israel late Wednesday, warned that Israel will act against anyone who seeks to harm its citizens. .
“We also prepare hard for security. “Hundreds of air defense soldiers, together with air traffic control personnel, are stationed throughout the country with the best systems, ready to carry out their mission,” said Bar.
Haniyeh and the leader of Islamic Jihad, Ziad Al-Nakhala, as well as senior representatives of the Tehran-backed Houthi movement in Yemen and Lebanon's Hezbollah, attended the inauguration ceremony of Iran's new president in Tehran on on Tuesday. Hezbollah Vice President Naim Qassim and MP Hassan Fadlallah were in Iran for the inauguration and stayed there for the funeral and the meeting, sources familiar with Hezbollah's thinking said.
'The Big Impact'
The armed wing of Hamas said in a statement that the killing of Haniyeh would “take the war to a new dimension and have a major impact.” Iran has vowed to retaliate, saying the US is responsible for its support for Israel.
“Iran has asked the head of an Iraqi opposition group to travel to Tehran on Wednesday for an emergency meeting to discuss retaliation for recent Israeli strikes, including in Lebanon and Iran and the US strike. in Iraq,” said a local militia commander.
Another militia source said opposition group commanders went to Haniyeh's funeral and attended an “emergency meeting” to decide the next steps to retaliate against Israel and the United States.
Iranians mourned Haniyeh on Thursday, a day after he was killed.
“All sides of the resistance will shed Haniyeh's blood,” Ali Akbar Ahmadian, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, told Iran's semi-official Mehr news agency.
The Iran-backed Axis of Resistance includes Hamas — the Palestinian group that ignited the conflict in Gaza with an attack on Israel on October 7 — Lebanon's Hezbollah, Yemen's Houthis and various Shiite armed groups there. Iraq and Syria. .
On April 13, Iran launched several missiles and drones at Israel in what it said was retaliation for an April 1 strike on its embassy in Damascus, but almost all of them were shot down.
“Iran's response to the killing of Martyr Haniyeh will be stronger than before,” former head of the Revolutionary Guards, Esmail Kosari, said on state television.
