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| Iranian Commander Vows to Avenge Israeli Airstrike | |
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| TEHRAN — Iran’s highest Revolutionary Guards commander issued a threat against Israel after the death of an Iranian general in an Israeli helicopter strike along the border with Syria, saying that “destructive thunderbolts” await. | |
| The commander, Mohammad Ali Jafari, said the fact that an Iranian general was so close to Israeli territory proved that Iran’s power “has passed over geographical borders,” Mr. Jafari added, in a statement distributed by state news media on Tuesday. | The commander, Mohammad Ali Jafari, said the fact that an Iranian general was so close to Israeli territory proved that Iran’s power “has passed over geographical borders,” Mr. Jafari added, in a statement distributed by state news media on Tuesday. |
| The Iranian general, Mohammad Ali Allahdadi, was killed along with a Hezbollah commander and the son of the group’s late military leader, Imad Mughniyeh, in Sunday’s attack on a Hezbollah convoy near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. | The Iranian general, Mohammad Ali Allahdadi, was killed along with a Hezbollah commander and the son of the group’s late military leader, Imad Mughniyeh, in Sunday’s attack on a Hezbollah convoy near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. |
| After issuing a ritual denunciation of the “Zionist regime,” Mr. Jafari said: “These martyrdoms prove that we should not distance ourselves from the jihad, the Zionists should prepare themselves for our shattering thunderbolt. They have experienced our rage in the past.” | After issuing a ritual denunciation of the “Zionist regime,” Mr. Jafari said: “These martyrdoms prove that we should not distance ourselves from the jihad, the Zionists should prepare themselves for our shattering thunderbolt. They have experienced our rage in the past.” |
| Iran has often threatened Israel with retaliation after attacks on its regional allies, Hezbollah and Syria, and an Iranian analyst said that the commander’s threats, like others in the past, were mostly for domestic consumption. | Iran has often threatened Israel with retaliation after attacks on its regional allies, Hezbollah and Syria, and an Iranian analyst said that the commander’s threats, like others in the past, were mostly for domestic consumption. |
| “He is addressing his troops after some of them were martyred,” said Mashallah Shamsolvaezin, an Iranian Arab affairs analyst. “Just like Israel makes statements for domestic consumption, we do too.” | “He is addressing his troops after some of them were martyred,” said Mashallah Shamsolvaezin, an Iranian Arab affairs analyst. “Just like Israel makes statements for domestic consumption, we do too.” |
| More important, said an Iranian analyst close to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is the country’s growing willingness to acknowledge its military expansion in the region. | More important, said an Iranian analyst close to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is the country’s growing willingness to acknowledge its military expansion in the region. |
| “Our officials and military commanders are not shy of openly saying that Iran is supporting the resistance,” said the analyst, Hamid Reza Taraghi. “Bear in mind that it has been his eminence, the supreme leader, who first proposed that the West Bank must be armed against the Zionists. Similar remarks are merely echoes of his commands.” | “Our officials and military commanders are not shy of openly saying that Iran is supporting the resistance,” said the analyst, Hamid Reza Taraghi. “Bear in mind that it has been his eminence, the supreme leader, who first proposed that the West Bank must be armed against the Zionists. Similar remarks are merely echoes of his commands.” |
| On Tuesday, Israel denied that the helicopter attack had been aimed against the commanders, with Reuters quoting an anonymous official as saying that Israel believed that it was attacking only low-ranking guerrillas. | On Tuesday, Israel denied that the helicopter attack had been aimed against the commanders, with Reuters quoting an anonymous official as saying that Israel believed that it was attacking only low-ranking guerrillas. |
| Asked if Israel expected Iranian or Hezbollah retaliation for the airstrike, the official said: “They are almost certain to respond. We are anticipating that, but I think it’s a fair assumption that a major escalation is not in the interest of either side.” | Asked if Israel expected Iranian or Hezbollah retaliation for the airstrike, the official said: “They are almost certain to respond. We are anticipating that, but I think it’s a fair assumption that a major escalation is not in the interest of either side.” |
| “We did not expect the outcome in terms of the stature of those killed — certainly not the Iranian general,” the official told Reuters. “We thought we were hitting an enemy field unit that was on its way to carry out an attack on us at the frontier fence. We got the alert, we spotted the vehicle, identified it was an enemy vehicle and took the shot. We saw this as a limited tactical operation.” | “We did not expect the outcome in terms of the stature of those killed — certainly not the Iranian general,” the official told Reuters. “We thought we were hitting an enemy field unit that was on its way to carry out an attack on us at the frontier fence. We got the alert, we spotted the vehicle, identified it was an enemy vehicle and took the shot. We saw this as a limited tactical operation.” |
| Israeli forces and civilians were on heightened alert Tuesday in areas near the borders with Lebanon and Syria. Israel has deployed an Iron Dome missile defense battery in the north and closed a road running close to the border with Lebanon, Israeli news media reported. | Israeli forces and civilians were on heightened alert Tuesday in areas near the borders with Lebanon and Syria. Israel has deployed an Iron Dome missile defense battery in the north and closed a road running close to the border with Lebanon, Israeli news media reported. |
| According to Iranian websites close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, the group had been “inspecting” the region of Quneitra and giving “crucial advice” to Syrians fighting “terrorism.” That is how the Syrian government characterizes its battle against an insurgency that began with peaceful protests for political reforms and now includes fighters from the Nusra Front, a group linked to Al Qaeda. | According to Iranian websites close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, the group had been “inspecting” the region of Quneitra and giving “crucial advice” to Syrians fighting “terrorism.” That is how the Syrian government characterizes its battle against an insurgency that began with peaceful protests for political reforms and now includes fighters from the Nusra Front, a group linked to Al Qaeda. |