The Hezbollah terrorist group is expected to hit Israel in the coming days independent of Iran’s own looming retaliatory strike, sources briefed on the matter have warned.
The Lebanon-based terrorist group is moving faster in its plan to avenge Hezbollah senior commander Fuad Shukr, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike last week, with the group unlikely to wait for a response from their backers in Tehran, sources told CNN.
It remains unclear how Iran, which is also expected to attack Israel directly for the assassination of Hamas’ top leader in Tehran, is coordinating with Hezbollah.
But now fears are growing that the proxy will go off on its own and trigger an all-out war in the Middle East.
The uncertainties over Hezbollah’s attack have left Israelis scrambling for assurance from their government given Lebanon’s proximity to Israel and the near-daily skirmishes that have left tens of thousands to evacuate their homes in the north.
Hezbollah claimed the anxiety over the looming strike is part of its attack on the Jewish state, which differs from Iran’s response as Tehran has been rather open about its planning.
Iran called for an emergency meeting of the 57-member state Organization of Islamic Cooperation on Wednesday, which condemned Israel’s alleged strike in Tehran and called for an appropriate response.
The OIC appeared to give Iran all the justification it needed for its attack on Israel, but Tehran and the OIC have reiterated that they do not seek to escalate the violence into war.
It remains unclear how committed Hezbollah is to avoiding war following a front-page report in Lebanon’s Al-Akhbar newspaper, which is affiliated with the terror group, suggesting the militants were preparing an attack on Tel Aviv that could cause civilian casualties.
The story, penned by Al-Akhbar editor-in-chief Ibrahim al-Aminm suggested such an attack would be appropriate as the Israeli strike that killed Shukr in Beirut also led to civilian casualties.
Shukr was targeted for allegedly masterminding a Hezbollah attack last month that led to the death of 12 youths playing on a soccer field in the Golan Heights.
Israeli officials have told the US that if Hezbollah’s looming retaliatory attack harms Israeli civilians, then it will suffer a “disproportionate price,” Axios reports.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant issued his own warning on Wednesday, saying Hezbollah will pay a heavy price should its near-daily attacks against northern Israel escalate to a point of no return.
“This may also deteriorate into a war. It’s not theoretical, it’s real,” Gallants said during a military event.
