As Israel awaits a military strike from Iran, Hizbullah and other Iranian-backed militias in the region, the foreign ministry in Tehran stressed it is not looking to escalate regional tensions but believes it needs to punish Israel to prevent further instability.
G7 nations expressed their deep concern at the heightened level of tension in the Middle East and urged all involved parties to work toward de-escalation. US secretary of state Antony Blinken reportedly told the G7 foreign ministers on Sunday that Iran’s attack on Israel could come “in the next 24 to 48 hours”.
The current tension follows Israel’s assassination of two militant leaders in Beirut and Tehran last week, seven hours apart. Those attacks came after 12 children and teenagers were killed in a strike on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which Israel blamed on Hizbullah.
Defence minister Yoav Gallant told air force commanders on Monday that Israel is ready for all eventualities. “Our enemies are carefully considering their steps thanks to the abilities you’ve displayed over the past year. However, we must be prepared for all options, including a quick shift to attack.”
President Yitzhak Herzog offered a reassuring message to Israeli citizens: “I do not downplay the severity of the threat for a moment. I see and hear the fears and am well aware of the concerns and the doubts, certainly after October 7th. And despite everything, as someone who has access to information, to intelligence, to various materials, I say explicitly: the state of Israel is prepared to cope with this threat.”
Washington is standing by Israel and has sent a large number of warships, combat planes and defence systems to the region. Israeli media reported that president Joe Biden has also decided to send half-ton bombs for combat planes that he has held up for several months for fear they would be used against civilians in Gaza. However, the US is still holding up the shipment of some 1,800 heavier MK-84 bombs which weigh one ton, as tension continues between Mr Biden and prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu over the lack of progress towards a Gaza ceasefire.
Two soldiers were injured in a Hizbullah drone strike on northern Israel on Monday. The Israeli army said it intercepted a number of drones launched from south Lebanon and hit a militant cell operating one of the drones.
In Gaza, five Hamas police officers were killed in an Israeli attack on a vehicle east of the central Gazan neighbourhood of Deir al-Balah. According to local reports, the five officers worked in the protection of humanitarian aid convoys.
About 15 rockets were fired on Monday from Gaza – the fourth consecutive day of militant fire from Gaza at southern Israel, including rocket fire on Sunday at the port city Ashdod, 40km away.
According to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, more than 39,600 Palestinians have been killed since the war began on October 7th. Israel says 1,200 people were killed and 253 hostages seized in the surprise Hamas attack on that day – 116 hostages remain in Gaza and Israel has confirmed the death of 42 of them.
As the Gaza war approaches its 10th month, a new report published by CNN on Monday showed that nearly half of Hamas’s military battalions in northern and central Gaza have rebuilt some of their fighting capabilities. CNN quoted Israeli military sources as saying the Hamas battalions located in central Gaza have not been adequately “dealt with’’ by the army because they are believed to be holding many of the Israeli hostages captured by Hamas during the October 7th attack.