References to a direct and large-scale attack on Israel have gradually diminished in Tehran's state-controlled media over the past few days.
On Saturday, the start of the week in Iran, news and political websites featured a few interviews and analytical pieces discussing the potential consequences of a major retaliatory strike.
However, there were no new reports of officials or clerics issuing fresh threats.
A Knesset member is warning the leaders of the Islamic Republic in Tehran against striking Israel, as a potential war looms after the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
Amit Halevi shared his insider perspective as an Israeli official on the behind-the-scenes discussions surrounding escalating tensions in the Middle East during Iran International's 'Eye for Iran' podcast.
The Israeli lawmaker said Lebanon, where Iran's proxy Hezbollah is based, is crucial in the conflict as he hinted Israel's next move could play out there.
"Israel will not allow that Lebanon will stay a terror state," said Halevi.
The Middle East has been bracing for a possible strike by Iran and its proxies following Haniyeh’s assassination in Tehran, along with the killing of top Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in an Israeli strike in Beirut hours earlier.
If the Islamic Republic decides to back down, despite it telegraphing revenge, and not retaliate on Israel's soil like it did on April 13, Lebanon may very well turn into a bigger proxy battle field for the two nations.
Israel has not confirmed or denied any involvement in the killing of Haniyeh, but Iran and its allies and proxies are blaming the Jewish state.
Iran managed to lobby Saudi Arabia to say on Wednesday that the assassination of the Hamas leader in Tehran was a “blatant violation” of Iran’s sovereignty.
Halevi said, while the Saudi kingdom, may have said that in public, a different picture emerges behind closed doors.
"MBS, the King of Saudi Arabia understands very well the meaning of a strong Iran," said Halevi.
The Israeli official, who is the chairman of the Israel-Bahrain Friendship Association, said neighboring Arab countries that are part of Abraham Accords, have the same fears as Israel, and secretly support their Jewish neighbor.
"Behind the scenes they know that this religious ideological infrastructure threatens them," he said.
Find out more about the appointment of Yahya Sinwar as the new head of Hamas, how Israel would respond to a potential attack from the Islamic Republic and how neighboring Arab countries would likely react by watching the full episode on You Tube, or listening on Apple, Spotify or Amazon.
Iran’s UN representative has said the country’s potential retaliatory attack against Israel would be “timed and conducted” in a way not to endanger a potential ceasefire in Gaza, seemingly indicating that the response could be less severe than first claimed.
"The Israeli regime has violated our national security and sovereignty through its recent act of terrorism. We have the legitimate right to self-defense,” Iran’s New York based mission stated Friday. “However, we hope that our response will be timed and conducted in a manner not to the detriment of the potential ceasefire.”
The statement also confirmed that “direct and intermediary official channels” have always been open between Iran and the United States.
US troops in Syria were attacked by a drone, a US official told Reuters on Friday.
Initial reports do not indicate any injuries, but investigations are ongoing, said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to Reuters.
This marks the second assault on US forces in the Middle East in recent days, as the region anticipates a potential new wave of attacks by Iran and its allies.
The incident occurred at the Rumalyn Landing Zone, where US troops are stationed alongside those from the US-led coalition.
Iran’s UN representative has said the country’s potential retaliatory attack against Israel would be “timed and conducted” in a way not to endanger a potential ceasefire in Gaza, seemingly indicating that the response could be less severe than first claimed.
"The Israeli regime has violated our national security and sovereignty through its recent act of terrorism. We have the legitimate right to self-defense,” Iran’s New York based mission stated Friday. “However, we hope that our response will be timed and conducted in a manner not to the detriment of the potential ceasefire.”
The statement also confirmed that “direct and intermediary official channels” have always been open between Iran and the United States.
The US is sending clear messages to Iran that it will have to reckon with not just Israeli but American resources if it were to go ahead with its promised large-scale retaliatory strike against Israel.
Iran has been threatening Israel for more than a week that it will ‘avenge’ the blood of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated in Tehran on 31 July.
The Biden administration has been trying to dissuade Iran behind the scenes. On Friday, however, the talk was accompanied by a stern walk when reports emerged that the US is set to provide Israel with $3.5 billion to spend on US weapons and military equipment, hours after White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said the US was ready to defend Israel with “plenty of resources” in the region.
"When we hear rhetoric like that, we've got to take it seriously, and we do," he said in reaction to remarks by the deputy commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), who had said Iran saw as its “duty” to punish Israel severely.
Iran’s previous retaliatory attack against Israel in April was nullified by the combined efforts of a US-led coalition that helped intercept missiles and drones launched from Iranian territory. This time, it seems the Biden administration has taken the threat more seriously and has not only warned Iran of “serious consequences” but also released the funds that the Congress had appropriated since April
According to a CNN report Friday, the State Department has notified lawmakers that the administration wants to release the money so that Israel can purchase “advanced weapons systems”, as Israel braces for an attack by Iran and (likely) Hezbollah.
The “systems” would not be delivered to Israel immediately and some may even take “several” years to be ready, according to sources who spoke with CNN. The timing of the announcement, however, seems to be intended as yet another message by the US to both Iran and Israel, clarifying the Biden administration’s stance if its diplomatic efforts to prevent an all-out war were to fail.
The message has been taken by the more moderate parts of the state, the newly elected president Masoud Pezeshkian, in particular, who, as Iran International reported a few days ago, tried to implore the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to hold back the attack against Israel for fears that it would adversely impact his term –even before he’s gotten to form his cabinet.
Khamenei has shown no sign that he agreed to Pezehkian’s plea. Many more signs exist to the contrary, in fact, as IRGC commanders keep promising to attack Israel.
“The Supreme Leader’s directives regarding severe punishment of Israel and avenging the blood of Ismail Haniyeh are clear and explicit,” IRGC lieutenant commander Ali Fadavi said Friday. “These directives will be carried out in the best possible way, and this is Iran's current duty.”
This message was reiterated Friday by IRGC’s Quds Force chief Esmail Qaani, who said that the attack on Israel this time will be harsher than the one in April. “We are preparing to avenge [Haniyeh’s] blood, a painful and difficult incident that happened in the Islamic Republic of Iran. This is our duty," Qaani wrote in a letter to Haniyeh’s successor, Yahya Sinwar.
Qaani also emphasized the role of Tehran-backed regional militias within the "Resistance Front" in the retaliation, stating, "The heroic jihad of your brothers in the Islamic Resistance will amplify the impact of the punishment more than ever before and will lead to the swift eradication of this malevolent phenomenon."