The leader of “Hamas“ Ismail Haniya was killed with a “short-range projectile” and a warhead of about 7 kg, the Revolutionary Guards of Iran announced in a statement quoted by Reuters, writes BTA.
Tehran's retaliation will be “severe and will be carried out at the right time, place and manner", as well as through the wide network of Iran-backed armed groups in the Middle East, the Revolutionary Guards said, which blamed Israel about Hania's death.
Israel will not “hold back” if Iran launches a retaliatory attack, warned a senior Israeli security official quoted by DPA.
Iran's allies include Yemen's Houthi rebels and the armed group “Hezbollah” in Lebanon, as well as numerous other militias in Iraq and Syria that are loyal to Tehran.
In a letter to the leader of “Hezbollah” Hassan Nasrallah, the commander of the Revolutionary Guards, General Hossein Salami, spoke of harsh and bloody revenge. Salami writes that Israel will have to pay a high price for killing the leader of “Hamas” Ismail Haniya and the commander of “Hezbollah” Fuad Shukr.
Tensions in the region are rising after Israel killed Shukr in an airstrike on Beirut, DPA said.
The United States has said it plans to move a fighter squadron to the Middle East to boost its military presence in the region. The US Department of Defense is taking steps to “reduce the possibility of regional escalation by Iran or its partners and proxies”, a government official told DPA.
After nearly 10 months of fighting between “Hamas” and Israel in the Gaza Strip, there are fears that the Middle East is already on the brink of a regional war.