Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian warned on Monday evening that the country’s proxies around the Middle East could launch preemptive strikes on Israel “in the coming hours.”
“In the coming hours, any preemptive action against the Zionist regime is conceivable,” said Amirabdollahian while referencing his recent meeting with Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah in an interview with Iranian television. “The leaders of the resistance will not allow the Zionist regime to do whatever it wants in Gaza and then go to other fronts of the resistance.”
The foreign minister claimed as well that Iran “does not give orders” to the Iran-backed militias and terrorist groups throughout the region which make up what they refer to as “the Axis of Resistance.”
“Today, when we talk about the resistance in the region, it is not only Hezbollah, and we are witnessing the activities of various resistance groups in the region,” said the Iranian official, threatening that if the war expands to other fronts it will lead to a change in the map of Israel.
Amirabdollahian added that “if the war crimes of the Zionist regime are not stopped, new fronts will be opened and this issue will be inevitable.”
The foreign minister claimed that the US sent a message to Iran asking them to show “restraint” and not expand the conflict, saying that Iran responded that “we are not seeking to expand the war, but restraint is not unilateral.”
When asked if Iran could possibly join the war against Israel, Amirabdollahian responded “Every possibility is conceivable…no party can be indifferent to the continuation of these crimes.”
The Iranian official added as well that “if we do not defend Gaza today, tomorrow we will have to deal with the phosphorus bombs of the regime in our own hospitals. An opportunity has been obtained for us to stop the Zionists inside their own home.”
Hamas says Hezbollah needs to do more
Former Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal also referenced efforts to get Hezbollah to join the war more directly in an interview with Al-Araby TV on Monday evening, saying that “Hezbollah has thankfully taken steps, but the battle requires more, and it is in our interest to fight the war together.”
Hezbollah has launched a series of attacks on IDF soldiers and Israeli civilians since the war began, killing three IDF soldiers and one Israeli civilian in its attacks. Another three IDF soldiers were killed in an infiltration conducted by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group from Lebanon as well.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf issued threats against Israel as well on Monday, saying that a ground invasion of Gaza will “open the gates of hell.”
Iranian FM meets with leaders of proxies across the Middle East
Amirabdollahian’s comments come after he conducted a series of meetings with leaders of Iranian proxies, including Hamas and Hezbollah, and politicians in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Qatar in recent days.
The Iranian foreign minister met with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on Saturday night in Qatar, promising to “continue cooperation to fully achieve the goals of Hamas and the Palestinian people.”
During his visit to Beirut, Amirabdollahian warned that all the terrorist groups that are part of the Axis led by Iran have their “fingers on the trigger.”
“In case of procrastination by the international community and the United Nations and the activists who support the warmongering of the Israeli regime, the response will be done at the right time and the desired resistance,” said Amirabdollahian. “I found out in the conversation with the leaders that the response that will be given is regrettable and will change the current map of the occupied territories.”
“Based on my understanding of the situation, I warn the war criminals and their supporters in the region to stop Israel’s crimes against civilians before it is too late, maybe it will be too late in a few hours. There is still a political opportunity to avoid a widespread crisis in the region. Today, I will meet with the representative of the UN secretary-general in the region and I will say that there is still a political opportunity, but tomorrow is too late.”
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