Iran braces for Israeli backlash, evacuates officers from Syria
18 April 2024 08:50
Iran is preparing for Israeli retaliation, according to the American newspaper "Wall Street Journal". For this purpose, Tehran has reportedly started evacuating officers stationed in Syria.
The "WSJ" notes that Tehran announced it is getting its air forces ready for strikes, and the Iranian navy will secure Iranian merchant ships in the Red Sea. Additionally, the journal, citing Syrian and Iranian officials, reports that the regime has begun moving personnel from locations in Syria where the Iranian Revolutionary Guards are based.
High-ranking officers of the Guards and representatives of Hezbollah, supported by Iran, have already left Syria, while mid-level officers are relocating within the country.
The United States, along with other Western and Arab countries, are urging Israel not to escalate the conflict further. Israeli officials, quoted by the "WSJ", state that Israel has not yet chosen a course of action in response to these developments.
On Wednesday, after discussions with the foreign ministers of Germany and the UK, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel "will make its own decisions and do whatever is necessary to defend itself".
Israel sends a message to allies
On Monday, in response to international pressures, representatives of the Israeli government reassured Arab countries that had supported Israel in defence against Iranian shelling that any retaliation would not harm them and would "probably be limited in scale". Israel also plans to notify these countries before taking any actions and will restrict the targets of attack to Iranian facilities in Syria.
On Saturday, Iran attacked Israel using a total of more than 300 rockets and drones. This was in retaliation for a strike on a diplomatic facility in Damascus, which led to the deaths of seven Revolutionary Guards officers. Although Israeli forces have frequently targeted sites in Syria associated with Iran, this particular attack led to a forceful response from Tehran because it was aimed at a diplomatic site. Israel maintains it was not a diplomatic facility, while the USA is still assessing its nature.
