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Netanyahu Says Israel Will Exact Heavy Price for Revenge Attacks

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, US, July 24, 2024. REUTERS/Craig Hudson/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, US, July 24, 2024. REUTERS/Craig Hudson/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
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Netanyahu Says Israel Will Exact Heavy Price for Revenge Attacks

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, US, July 24, 2024. REUTERS/Craig Hudson/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, US, July 24, 2024. REUTERS/Craig Hudson/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Israel will respond forcefully to any attack on it, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday, after the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and of a senior Hezbollah leader in Beirut.

Netanyahu said Israel had delivered crushing blows to Iran's proxies over the past few days, including Hamas and Hezbollah. But he did not mention Haniyeh's killing, which has drawn threats of revenge on Israel and fuelled further concern that the conflict in Gaza was turning into a

"Citizens of Israel, challenging days lie ahead. Since the strike in Beirut there are threats sounding from all directions. We are prepared for any scenario and we will stand united and determined against any threat. Israel will exact a heavy price for any aggression against us from any arena," Netanyahu said in a televised statement, Reuters reported.

Israel's military announced late on Tuesday it had killed Fuad Shukr, whom it named as Hezbollah's most senior commander and whom it blamed for an attack at the weekend that left a dozen youngsters dead in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Shukr was an adviser to Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, according to Hezbollah sources and to Israeli officials.

Iran-backed Hezbollah confirmed his death on Wednesday, hours after the Palestinian armed group Hamas announced its leader, Haniyeh, had been assassinated in Teheran.

Although the Tehran attack was widely assumed to have been carried out by Israel, Netanyahu's government made no claim of responsibility and said it would make no comment on Haniyeh's killing.

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US Not Expecting Surge in Attacks on Troops in Iraq, Syria, Defense Secretary Says 

Members of the Iraqi Shiite Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) mourn during a funeral of their colleague, who was killed in an airstrike in southern Baghdad, during a funeral procession in Baghdad, Iraq, 31 July 2024. (EPA)
Members of the Iraqi Shiite Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) mourn during a funeral of their colleague, who was killed in an airstrike in southern Baghdad, during a funeral procession in Baghdad, Iraq, 31 July 2024. (EPA)
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US Not Expecting Surge in Attacks on Troops in Iraq, Syria, Defense Secretary Says 

Members of the Iraqi Shiite Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) mourn during a funeral of their colleague, who was killed in an airstrike in southern Baghdad, during a funeral procession in Baghdad, Iraq, 31 July 2024. (EPA)
Members of the Iraqi Shiite Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) mourn during a funeral of their colleague, who was killed in an airstrike in southern Baghdad, during a funeral procession in Baghdad, Iraq, 31 July 2024. (EPA)

Despite a spike in tensions in the Middle East, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday he did not currently expect Iran-backed militias to step up attacks against US forces in Iraq and Syria, as they have in the past.

The United States on Tuesday carried out a strike in Iraq that US officials described as self-defense, one of a series of high-profile attacks in the region over the past day that also included an Israeli airstrike in Beirut that killed senior Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was also assassinated in the Iranian capital Tehran on Wednesday morning.

"I think, quite frankly, I don't see a return to where we were several months ago, not yet," Austin told reporters as he departed the Philippines.

Between Oct. 7 and February, US troops were attacked over 160 times in Iraq and Syria, usually with a mix of rockets and one-way attack drones, prompting the United States to mount several retaliatory attacks.

The deadliest attack was in late January, when an Iranian-made drone killed three US soldiers and wounded dozens more near the Jordan border.

Since then, there had been a lull in attacks against US forces in Iraq and Syria. But last week, multiple rockets were launched toward Iraq's Ain al-Asad airbase housing US-led forces, US and Iraqi sources said. US officials said none had hit the base, and no damage or casualties were reported.

"The safety and protection of our troops is really, really important to me. That's why, you know, you saw us take some measures to protect ourselves here," Austin added.

Asked if the recent attacks on US forces were connected to rising tensions between Hezbollah in Lebanon and Israel, Austin said: "I think it's all connected."

Haniyeh's assassination drew threats of revenge on Israel and fueled further concern that the conflict in Gaza could be turning into a wider Middle East war.

Although the attack was widely assumed to have been carried out by Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said merely that Israel had delivered crushing blows to Iran's proxies over the past few days.

Asked about the killing, Austin said he had heard the reports but did not have any information to provide.