Iran launched its first-ever direct retaliatory strike against the Israeli state in April following the bombing of the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria. While that response was considered measured by analysts, it's unlikely Iran will pull its punches after the assassination of Hamas' political leader in Tehran.
As the world awaits Iran's response to the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, the waiting itself suggests the retaliation will come in the form of a "big strike," independent journalist Jim Kavanagh told Sputnik.
Since the Haniyeh killing, as well as that of Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr, both Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah have vowed to response.
As Khamenei issued an order for a direct strike during an emergency meeting in the aftermath of the assassination, Nasrallah has promised a "impactful and effective response." Reports have indicated that the waiting game is part of the response.
"The longer they take, it seems to me - again, we're all guessing, we're all speculating, I don't know what's happening ... but it seems to me the longer they take that just means they're more seriously preparing," Kavanagh told Radio Sputnik's Critical Hour on Friday. "They're getting ready for what they're going to do offensively and they're getting ready for what they can do defensively."
"It looks to me like it's going to be a big strike and, as you say, they're not taking the calls of the Americans and the Europeans to say, 'oh, please don't do this,' or 'please don't do that,' or 'you might start a big war.' They're saying if a big war comes to this, you should've started, you should've restrained Israel weeks ago, months ago and that's their problem," the journalist emphasized.
"The end of this, however long it takes, whatever starts, it's going to be a situation in which either Israel is going to continue killing anybody it wants, any number of people it wants, anywhere it wants, anyhow it wants, or - in which case Israel will have won a strategic victory - or there'll be a situation, which would be a first, in which Israel will have been hurt so badly that it's forced to back off from killing anybody it wants, whenever it wants, etc.," Kavanagh said.....more below
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps’ (IRGC) Intelligence Unit says Iran will consider the Israeli regime’s shelters “legitimate targets” if residential areas in the country come under attack.
In a post published on social media platform X on Tuesday, the IRGC said that any strikes on residential areas in Iran would give Iran’s armed forces the right to attack Israeli shelters in the occupied lands.
The IRGC stated that it has intelligence on the blueprints and the exact locations of these shelters.
Iran began its Operation True Promise 4 after the US and Israel launched their joint military aggression against the Islamic Republic in late February by assassinating Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei, and several senior Iranian officials.
In its latest wave of attacks, the IRGC said it rained down missiles on the Israeli regime’s “secure” intelligence facilities in Tel Aviv.
Iranian armed forces have also pounded American military bases and ...
In a fresh wave of retaliatory strikes, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) targeted the Israeli regime’s “secure” intelligence facilities in Tel Aviv.
The IRGC’s Public Relations Department said in a statement on Tuesday that it had carried out the 79th wave of its ongoing retaliatory Operation True Promise 4 against the Israeli and American targets.
Deploying powerful Kheybar Shekan, Emad, and Sejjil missiles alongside IRGC Aerospace Force kamikaze drones, the operation successfully breached the regime's multi-layered air defense systems, the statement said.
The missiles, it stated, targeted Israel’s intelligence facilities in northern and central Tel Aviv, as well as military commercial and support centers in Ramat Gan and the Negev.
The missiles also hit Israel’s southern military logistics and command headquarters in Beersheba.
The missile strikes triggered widespread panic across Israel and forced the suspension of a Knesset (parliament) session on Tuesday.
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The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) announces staging the 78th wave of its underway retaliatory Operation True Promise 4, targeting such highly sensitive Israeli targets as Dimona, Tel Aviv, and Eilat as well as several US military bases in the region.
In a statement on Tuesday, the IRGC described the latest phase of the operation as a significant development featuring missiles raining down on enemy targets as the nation was leveling momentous support behind the Islamic Republic by attending millions-strong rallies with "clenched fists."
'A distinct record'
The latest phase, it noted, "has set a distinct record in the timeline of the war."
According to the statement, targets in the occupied port of Eilat, Dimona, a heavily fortified city that hosts the Israeli regime's notorious nuclear reactor in its vicinity, and northern Tel Aviv were struck using Emad and multi-warhead Qadr missile systems along with attack drones.
This was the second time the Corps was hitting Dimona, ...
