Reports have surfaced indicating that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has ordered Iranian forces to initiate a 'direct' assault on Israel. This development was confirmed by three Iranian officials who spoke to the New York Times. The directive comes in the wake of the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on Wednesday.
While the White House has not independently verified Haniyeh's death, Tehran has attributed the incident to the Israel Defense Forces. Israel, on the other hand, has neither claimed nor denied responsibility for the strike in Beirut, Lebanon, which occurred on Tuesday.
