Iran warned that action against Israel could come within hours and that the “leaders of the Resistance” won’t allow an invasion of Gaza.
Israel delayed its ground invasion of the Gaza strip last weekend, and there are reports that it did so partially out of fear that Hezbollah, Iran’s proxy, would intervene once Israeli Defense Forces were distracted in the south. Iran seems keen to reinforce this notion, announcing on Monday that it was ready within a few hours’ notice to open up a new front against Israel and saying that the anti-Israeli “Resistance” would not allow an invasion of Gaza.
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“All possible options and scenarios are there for Hezbollah. Everything has been considered correctly in their calculations and resistance leaders will not allow the Zionist regime to take any action in the region. Any preemptive measure is possible in the coming hours,” Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency.
“The resistance front is capable of waging a long-term war with the enemy (Israel),” he said, adding, “If the limited opportunities that the United Nations has are not used, the possibility of the opening of new fronts against the regime is unavoidable.”
The preemptive action is likely referring to another small-scale attack from Hezbollah fighters against Israeli forces across the Lebanese border. Several have occurred since the beginning of hostilities last week. The two have been engaged in a back-and-forth, with missile attacks responded to with drone or air strikes and vice versa.
Amir-Abdollahian argued that it is essential to fight Israel over Gaza.
“If we do not defend Gaza today, we should defend our cities tomorrow. Mr. Nasrallah has also said that if they do not take preemptive action, they will have to fight with Zionist forces in Beirut,” he said, referring to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. “The issue is that what has happened to the Zionist regime was an earthquake. … The Zionist regime collapsed on Oct. 7.”
In line with previous comments from Tehran, Amir-Abdollahian warned that time was running out for a peaceful solution to the conflict.
“Time is running out. [The United Nations] should find a solution within an international framework and should stop Netanyahu before the crisis deepens. They should know that time is running out and should find a political solution before reaching the boiling point,” he said.
“Iran cannot stand idly by and watch this situation unfold,” and the possibility of a new front opening up expands by the hour, Iran’s top diplomat said.
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Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi warned Russian President Vladimir Putin that the possibility of the war expanding in scope is rising, and it could open up to other fronts, likely referring to an intervention by Hezbollah. Putin spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the same day.
The prospect of a Hezbollah intervention is taken seriously by Israeli planners, as it is far larger and better armed than Hamas. The Palestinian terror group is estimated to have a few thousand troops, while Hezbollah has at least 60,000, according to Nicholas Blanford, an expert on Hezbollah with the Atlantic Council. Its firepower rivals that of most nations, including an arsenal of over 150,000 rockets that can strike anywhere within Israel.
