An Iranian woman holds a poster displaying Hamas leader Ismail Haniyah among other Palestinian and Iranian leaders assassinated by Israel, during the funeral procession of Haniyeh in Tehran on August 1, 2024.AFP
The risk of widened conflict in the Middle East has grown after Ismail Haniyeh’s assassination on Wednesday and the assassination of Hezbollah’s senior commander Fuad Shukr on Tuesday in an Israeli strike on the outskirts of the Lebanese capital Beirut.
Representatives of Palestinian resistance groups Hamas and the Islamic Jihad, as well as Yemen's Houthi movement, Lebanon's Hezbollah and Iraqi resistance groups, will attend the meeting in Tehran, the sources told Reuters.
"Iran and the resistance members will conduct a thorough assessment after the meeting in Tehran to find the best and most effective way to retaliate against the Zionist regime," said a senior Iranian official, with direct knowledge of the meeting.
Another Iranian official said Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and senior members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards will attend.
"How Iran and the resistance front will respond is currently being reviewed ... This will certainly happen and the Zionist regime will undoubtedly regret it," General Mohammad Baqeri, Iran's armed forces chief of staff, told state TV on Thursday.
Hezbollah deputy leader Naim Qassim and lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah were in Iran for the inauguration of Iran’s new president in Tehran on Wednesday and have remained there for the funeral and meeting, sources familiar with Hezbollah’s thinking said.
Khamenei led prayers for Haniyeh ahead of his burial in Qatar, having earlier threatened a "harsh punishment" for his killing.
The New York Times, citing Iranian officials, reported that Khamenei ordered Iran to strike Israel directly.
On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened with the war cabinet, as Israel increased security levels bracing for possible retaliation, according to media reports.
The security level at Israeli institutions, including diplomatic missions and embassies, worldwide was also raised earlier in the day, according to Yedioth Ahronoth.
Meanwhile, the Israel Aviation Authority said it cancelled flights to and from Israel until midnight Wednesday, "until the situation is reassessed."
Israel closed earlier airspace from Hadera, north of Tel Aviv, to the northern border.
Analysts agree that both strikes hit too close to home to pass without a response and constituted serious security breaches for Iran and Hezbollah, AP reported.
Calibrating that response to restore deterrence without sparking an even more damaging escalation may be the most delicate balancing act in nearly a year of teetering on the brink of a regional war.
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