U.S. and Israel brace for Iranian retaliation after Nasrallah killing

The United States government is working jointly with authorities in Tel Aviv on a defence plan out of fear of a planned Iranian attack on Israel in response to the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in an Israeli airstrike, CNN reported on Monday, citing a source in the American government.

The CNN station noted that preparations include repositioning U.S. forces without providing more details. In April, the U.S. led an international coalition that helped Israel defend against a barrage of hundreds of rockets and drones launched by Iran and its allies at Israel in retaliation for the killing of several senior officers of the Revolutionary Guard Corps in an airstrike in Damascus. The countries that came to Israel’s aid at the time included the U.S., United Kingdom, France, and Sunni Arab countries, shooting down most of the missiles.

The U.S. armed forces prepared for a similar operation at the beginning of August, when tensions in the region escalated after the death of Palestinian Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in an attack attributed to Israel in Tehran. Iran then threatened revenge, which, however, has not yet occurred.

The Shiite Hezbollah, which controls a part of Lebanon, is a close ally of Iran and the strongest link in the network of armed groups in the Middle East coordinated by Tehran and directed against Israel and the U.S.

Hassan Nasrallah was killed on Friday in an airstrike on the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, Beirut. Israel has been conducting extensive operations against Hezbollah for several weeks, a group that has been fighting this state with varying intensity for decades. Since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, there has been a regular exchange of fire on the Israeli-Lebanese border, which has forced the evacuation of civilians on both sides of the border.

Iran will ensure that all of Israel's actions are met with a response, and they are committed to reacting, stated Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani on Monday. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared on Saturday that Nasrallah's death will not go unavenged and called on Muslims to jointly oppose Israel’s "vile regime."

In Friday's attack on Beirut, General Abbas Nilforoushan of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps was also killed alongside Nasrallah and other high-ranking Hezbollah commanders.