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Iran has warned that Hezbollah will start targeting Israeli civilians in retaliation for the assassination of Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr.
What Iran said: A spokesman for the Permanent Mission of Iran has told CBS news “Until now, Hezbollah and the regime have, in an unwritten understanding, practically adhered to certain limits in their military operations, meaning that confining their actions to border areas and shallow zones, targeting primarily military objectives. However, the regime’s attack on Dahieh in Beirut and the targeting of a residential building marked a deviation from these boundaries. We anticipate that, in its response, Hezbollah will choose both broader and deeper targets, and will not restrict itself solely to military targets and means.”
What US media is saying: According to the Wall Street Journal, US and Arab diplomats have been attempting to hold back-channel negotiations with Iran to prevent a large-scale attack against Israel and a regional war. However, these efforts have been met with “angry silence” from Iran and Hezbollah. An Iranian official stated that the negotiations are and will continue to be fruitless due to Israel’s recent attacks, saying, “There is no point. Israel crossed all the red lines… Our response will be swift and heavy.”
What Israeli intel reports suggest: According to Israeli media, anonymous top officials have warned that Iran may attack Israel on Tisha B’Av, a Jewish day of mourning that begins on August 12 and ends on August 13. The attack is expected to be coordinated with Hezbollah, an Iran-backed group in Lebanon, and may also involve the Houthis in Yemen and various Iranian-backed proxies in Syria and Iraq.
Digging Deeper: The IRGC Quds Force’s Telegram channel has posted pictures of the IRGC special militia, known as Nakhsa (Popular Forces of Islamic Lands), claiming they are just hundreds of meters from the Israeli border. Nakhsa has been involved in the Syrian Civil War and the suppression of protests in Iran in 2009, 2019, and 2022.
