Iran has again threatened Israel with retaliation following the death of an Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) general in Syria. An Israeli airstrike on a suburb of the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Monday involved IRGC general Sayyed Razi Mousavi was killed. According to the New York Times, he helped oversee the delivery of rockets and other weapons to the Lebanese Hezbollah militia.
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Iranian Defense Ministry spokesman, Reza Talaei Nik, Israel threatened on Tuesday, according to the Tasnim news agency: “The Zionists (Israel) must prepare for the consequences of their crime… and they will be painful.” With the attack, Israel not only violated Syria's territorial integrity, but also further aggravated the already tense situation.
Israel warns Hezbollah
The Israeli military said Monday night it would not comment on foreign media reports. The New York Times wrote that Israeli authorities acknowledged they were preparing for possible Iranian retaliation. Israel, however, sent a sharp warning to Hezbollah in Lebanon, which is allied with Iran. “We are hitting Hezbollah very hard – it has lost around 150 fighters, its infrastructure is damaged, it has been pushed back from the border and the Force (Israeli) air force is flying unimpeded over Lebanon. We will redouble our efforts,” Israel said. said the defense minister Joav Gallant on Monday night.
Hezbollah in Lebanon strongly condemned the attack on Mousavi. “We see this attack as a blatant and brazen aggression,” the Shiite organization said. Israel therefore crossed a border. Israel regularly attacks targets in Syria to prevent Iran from expanding its military influence in the country with the help of militias. The Israeli military said Monday night it would not comment on foreign media reports.
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Almost daily bombing
Since the start of the war in Gaza, following the Hamas massacre in Israel on October 7, there have been almost daily exchanges of fire between the Israeli army and Hezbollah in the Israeli-Lebanese border region. It is the worst escalation since the second Lebanon war in 2006. It fuels fears of a new and bigger war between Israel and Hezbollah. Hezbollah emphasizes that it wants to support the fight of Hamas, which is also supported by Iran, in the Gaza Strip.
Gallant emphasized that Israel did not attack Hezbollah. Shiite militia continue to attack northern Israel. According to Israeli information, around 80,000 residents of Israeli cities near the border had to be evacuated. Gallant emphasized that Israeli security in the north would be restored. “Whether through an agreement or through military means,” he said. “Hezbollah is closely watching what is happening in Gaza and understands very well that what we did there, we can do in Beirut,” warned Gallant.
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Assad's most important ally
Iran, along with Russia, is the most important ally of the Syrian government in power Bashar al-Assad. For Tehran, Syria is part of the so-called “Axis of Resistance” in the fight against Israel, alongside the Shiite organization Hezbollah in Lebanon. The leadership in Tehran always claims that IRGC personnel in Syria only work as military advisors and are not directly involved in the civil war in that country. According to US intelligence, Iran also supports the Houthi rebels in Yemen and militias in Iraq.
Israel regularly attacks targets in Syria to prevent Iran from further expanding its military influence in the country with the help of militias. Both Lebanon and Syria are neighboring countries of Israel. This is why Israel feels threatened by the rocket arsenals of Hezbollah and other militias. Since the Gaza war began on October 7, tensions have increased, especially on the Lebanese-Israeli border.
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