G7 Warned of Potential Attacks on Israel by Iran and Hezbollah; Preemptive Israeli Strike Being Considered.
New Delhi: Axios reports that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has alerted his G7 counterparts of the possibility of assaults against Israel beginning on Monday by Iran and Hezbollah. To stop attacks on Israeli territory, the government under Benjamin Netanyahu may sanction a preemptive strike on Iran, according to a story published in the country’s most important daily, Times of Israel. As to the allegation, Netanyahu arranged a conference that included prominent Israeli intelligence agencies Mossad and Shin Bet, as well as their respective heads, David Barnea and Ronen Bar. IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also attended this meeting. Iran’s first Middle East proxy, Hezbollah was founded in the early 1980s with Iranian assistance. Hezbollah is mostly composed of Shia Muslims in Lebanon and is financed and armed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which also shares Tehran’s fundamental philosophy.
Iran said on Saturday that Hezbollah would go all out to assault Israeli territory, maybe focusing on targets other than military infrastructure. Tensions have escalated since Israel recently killed Fuad Shukr, a key military commander for Hezbollah. Shukr and five other civilians lost their lives when Israel targeted a heavily populated residential area in southern Beirut on July 30.
The death of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, in Tehran has further complicated the situation. Although Israeli officials have not confirmed it, the move is believed to have been orchestrated by Israel.
The months-long border skirmishes between Israel and Hezbollah have raised serious concerns because they could turn into a full-scale war. In the summer of 2006, the two enemies last fought a bloody conflict in which Israel destroyed Beirut’s sole passenger airport.
Given the gravity of the situation, numerous embassies, including India’s, have advised its nationals to evacuate Lebanon as soon as commercial aircraft are still operating.
