As a result of this operation, “strategic balances have undergone fundamental changes to the detriment” of Israel, Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said at X. The Israeli military has “lost its offensive and deterrent power” and must now “Defend avoid strategic strikes,” Nasser Kanani added. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf praised the Hezbollah operation on Sunday, saying it “successfully targeted sensitive military and intelligence installations” in Israel.
Fears of a regional conflagration
The IDF reported no casualties in the Hezbollah attacks, citing only “minor damage” including fires. It claimed to have thwarted a large-scale attack by the Iranian-backed and armed Shiite group, carrying out several strikes in Lebanon. Israel, the sworn enemy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, “may try to hide, distort or censor certain facts regarding Hezbollah operations, but it knows very well that the facts will not change,” Nasser Kanani continued.
Since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Hezbollah and the Israeli army have exchanged fire almost daily on the Israeli-Lebanese border. Tensions have worsened in recent weeks, fueling fears of a regional conflagration. Hezbollah, Iran and Hamas have threatened to retaliate the assassination attributed to Israel of Hamas leader Ismaïl Haniyehon July 31 in Tehran.
“We are not afraid of escalation”
On Sunday, the head of Iranian diplomacy, Abbas Araghchi, said in a statement that Iran's response to the attack attributed to Israel against Haniyeh on Iranian soil was “inevitable”. “We don't fear escalation, but we don't seek it either, unlike Israel,” he added.