Iranian officials and media outlets said Tehran is preparing a heavy response to Israel’s violent attacks on Beirut
News Desk - The Cradle
The report coincided with official Iranian warnings to maintain closure of the Strait of Hormuz and carry out missile strikes if attacks on Lebanon do not halt. Israel killed and injured hundreds in its assault on Lebanon and its capital on Wednesday.
According to the Lebanese Civil Defense, at least 250 were killed, and over 1,600 were injured.
“Iran has told regional mediators its participation in talks with US officials in Islamabad is conditional on a ceasefire in Lebanon,” the sources said. “It might also reverse its decision on reopening the Strait of Hormuz,” they added.
“Iranian mediators have also warned they would continue to carry out attacks on regional countries, including Israel, if attacks on Lebanon and Iran by Israel continue,” the sources went on to tell WSJ.
“An attack on the proud Hezbollah is an attack on Iran. The field is preparing a heavy response to the regime’s savage crimes. My dear people, the real fuel of the missiles is your united presence in the streets,” Commander of the Aerospace Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), General Majid Mousavi, said.
A senior Iranian official also told Al Jazeera that Iran will “punish” Israel in response to the aggression against Lebanon and the violation of the ceasefire conditions.
According to a security source cited by Iran’s Fars News Agency, Iran is preparing to carry out a deterrent operation against Israeli military positions following a violent bombing campaign all over Beirut and other parts of Lebanon.
The source stressed that in Tehran, the view is gaining ground that the continuation of attacks despite an agreement on all fronts indicates either that the US is unable to control Netanyahu or that freedom of action has been granted to Israel by CENTCOM.
“The Lebanese have made sacrifices for us, and we must not leave them alone for a single moment,” said Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesperson for the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee. “Either a ceasefire on all fronts, or no ceasefire at all.”
The Israeli army renewed its attacks on Beirut on Wednesday evening, striking a building in the Tallet al-Khayyat neighborhood hours after killing at least 254 and injuring over 1,110 others in the capital and elsewhere.
Israeli strikes also hit parts of Iran earlier on 8 April, after heavy Iranian missile strikes on Tel Aviv overnight.
The deadly wave of strikes on Lebanon on Wednesday comes after the US agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran, following US President Donald Trump’s acceptance of a 10-point plan from Tehran as a basis for further negotiations.
A round of negotiations in Islamabad, Pakistan, has been planned for Friday.
Iran’s 10-point plan includes a US non-aggression commitment, Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, acceptance of uranium enrichment, full sanctions removal, compensation to Iran, withdrawal of all US combat forces from the region, and cessation of war on all fronts, including Lebanon.
However, a White House official told CNN that the 10-point proposal Iran released to the media differed from the one Trump described as a “workable basis” for negotiations.
“Because of Hezbollah. They were not included in the deal. That’ll get taken care of too. It's alright. [Lebanon getting bombed is] part of the deal. That’s a separate skirmish,” Trump was quoted as saying by PBS News White House correspondent Elizabeth Landers.
Meanwhile, Pakistani officials have called for “restraint.”
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