Iran is going to launch a retaliatory strike against Israel for the dual assassinations of Hamas leader, Ismail Haniyeh, on July 31 and Hezbollah’s number two, Fuad Shukr, just hours before. The only questions are when, where and how far will Iran go, which leads to its own supplemental question: how dangerous will this situation now become?
Iran’s intention to retaliate was announced on July 7 by acting foreign minister, Ali Bagheri-Kani, at an extraordinary session of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Saudi Arabia. Bagheri-Kani told the meeting: “In the absence of appropriate action by the [United Nations] security council against the aggressions and violations of the Israeli regime, the Islamic Republic of Iran has no choice but to exercise its inherent right to legitimate defense against this regime’s actions.”
Israel is convening an emergency meeting of its security cabinet to discuss how to prepare for this retaliation. According to Middle East analysts at the Institute for the Study of War, this is being made more difficult for Israel’s security agencies by Iran’s armed forces media which is publishing a range of different information. The aim, they believe, is to “decrease Israel’s ability to effectively defend against an Iranian attack by causing Israel to disperse its air and missile-defense assets”.
