BEIRUT (AP) — Iran’s foreign minister called on Israel on Saturday to stop its attacks on Gaza, warning that the war could spread to other parts of the Middle East if Hezbollah joins the fight and that this could lead to a would lead to a “major earthquake” for Israel. ”
Hossein Amirabdollahian told reporters in Beirut that the Lebanese Hezbollah group had considered all war scenarios and Israel should stop its attacks on Gaza as soon as possible.
Israel considers Hezbollah its biggest immediate threat and estimates it has around 150,000 rockets and missiles, including precision-guided missiles that can hit anywhere in Israel. The group, which includes thousands of battle-hardened fighters who took part in Syria’s 12-year conflict, also has various types of military drones.
Hezbollah fighters were on high alert along Lebanon’s border with Israel following last Saturday’s attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas that killed hundreds of Israeli civilians and soldiers.
On Saturday, the Israeli military said an Israeli drone strike along the border with Lebanon killed a “cell” trying to enter Israel. On Friday, Hezbollah said its fighters fired several rockets at four Israeli positions along the border.
Amirabdollahian said he met Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, who briefed him on the group’s conditions in Lebanon.
“I know the scenarios that Hezbollah has put forward,” Amirabdollahian said. “Every step that the resistance (Hezbollah) will take will trigger a huge earthquake in the Zionist entity.”
Amirabdollahian added: “I want to warn the war criminals and those who support this organization before it is too late to stop the crimes against civilians in Gaza, because in a few hours it could be too late.”
With regard to Hezbollah, US President Joe Biden has warned other actors in the Middle East not to join the conflict, sent American warships to the region and pledged full support to Israel.
Iran’s foreign minister said he would contact U.N. officials in the Middle East because “there is still a possibility of working on an initiative (to end the war), but it may be too late tomorrow.”
The possibility of a new front in Lebanon brings back bitter memories of a brutal, months-long war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006 that ended in a stalemate and a tense detente between the two sides.