US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has alerted G7 counterparts that Iran and Hezbollah might launch an attack on Israel as soon as Monday, according to Axios. In contrast, the Times of Israel reports that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is considering a preemptive strike against Iran to thwart any potential attacks on Israeli soil. The report indicates that Netanyahu convened a meeting with key figures including Mossad chief David Barnea, Shin Bet head Ronen Bar, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi.
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Hezbollah, which was formed in the early 1980s with Iranian backing, serves as Iran’s primary proxy in the Middle East. It is funded and armed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and adheres to Tehran’s core ideology, recruiting mainly from Lebanon’s Shiite Muslim community.
Iran has announced that Hezbollah plans to intensify its attacks within Israeli territory, possibly targeting more than just military sites. This escalation comes after Israel’s recent assassination of Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr on July 30, who was killed in a strike on a residential area in south Beirut, which also resulted in the deaths of five civilians.
The situation is further complicated by the alleged assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, which is attributed to Israel but not officially confirmed.
The escalating tensions, marked by recent cross-border skirmishes, risk developing into a full-scale conflict between Hezbollah and Israel. Their last major confrontation was in the summer of 2006, during which Israel bombed Beirut’s only passenger airport.
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In light of the rising threat, several embassies, including India’s, have advised their citizens to leave Lebanon while commercial flights are still operational.
Hezbollah has been engaged in nearly daily exchanges of fire with Israeli forces, targeting military positions since Hamas, its Palestinian ally, launched an attack on Israel on October 7, which has escalated the ongoing war in Gaza.
In response to these developments, Antony Blinken organized a conference call with G7 foreign ministers to coordinate diplomatic efforts aimed at de-escalating the situation.
