Israel must face a “severe punishment” for the assassination of a top Hamas official in Iran , according to a senior Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps official, who aired the threat amid an internal debate and international effort to discourage the attack.
“There is no doubt that the blood of this noble martyr will have an impact on severe punishment of the Zionist regime at the hands of the Islamic Republic,” IRGC Brig. Gen. Esmail Qa'ani wrote in a letter to Yahya Sinwar, the Gaza-based mastermind of the Oct. 7 terrorist attack that sparked the war between Israel and Hamas. “The heroic struggle of your brothers in the Islamic resistance will intensify the effect of this punishment and lead to the elimination of this ominous phenomenon as soon as possible.”
That message suggests an apparent aspiration to target Israel in a coordinated fashion in response to the killing of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed last week while attending an Iranian presidential inauguration. Yet Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is trying to prevent such a retaliatory operation, according to reports that suggest he believes “the IRGC aims to draw the country into a war” with Israel.
“There have been lengthy and intense discussions where Mr Pezeshkian has been trying to persuade IRGC commanders to avoid actions that could spiral out of control,” an unnamed Pezeshkian aide said this week, according to the Telegraph. “He is aware that the IRGC aims to draw the country into a war, yet he is determined to uphold the promises he made during his presidential campaign which included providing peaceful life conditions for people.”
The Iranian president, however, has limited influence over security policy. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has ultimate authority in the regime, while Pezeshkian has a focus on stabilizing the Iranian economy, if possible.
“This is, I think, the part of the debate inside Tehran — how to react but not to lose the possibilities to be a regional player and to have a kind of pragmatic relationship with other countries in the region and maybe, maybe in Europe,” a European official based in Israel told the Washington Examiner. “I don't think that he wants a war because it will basically ruin his presidency.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, for his part, is urging Israel and Hamas to finalize a long-discussed ceasefire deal that would allow for the release of at least some of the hostages taken captive by the terrorist organization on Oct. 7. The United States, Qatar, and Egypt released a joint statement late Thursday calling for the two sides to return to “conclude the ceasefire” as quickly as possible.
“The time has come to conclude the ceasefire and hostages and detainees release deal,” the leaders of the three countries said. “As mediators, if necessary, we are prepared to present a final bridging proposal that resolves the remaining implementation issues in a manner that meets the expectations of all parties.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has stipulated that he will agree only to temporary ceasefires, responded by announcing that an Israeli negotiating team would return to Cairo for talks next week. That decision met with immediate opposition from the hard-right flank of his fragile coalition government.
“It is definitely not the time for a capitulating deal that ends the war before the elimination of the Hamas ISIS Nazis, allowing them to recover and return to murder Jews again,” Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said Friday. “I call on the Prime Minister not to fall into this trap and not agree to the shift, even in the slightest, from the red lines he set just recently, though they are also very problematic.”
Netanyahu has excluded Smotrich and his closest ally in the coalition, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, from setting policy related to the war. But he has to be cautious about alienating them entirely, as they could deprive him of a governing majority if they withdraw from the coalition.
“It’s incumbent upon not just the Israeli side, but also the Hamas side,” a senior U.S. official told reporters Thursday, per the Times of Israel. “At the end of the day, this is a hostage negotiation, and they’re holding hostages. … With some force of will and sitting down to hash it out, we think [a deal] is possible.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Blinken has implied that he thinks such a deal could provide Iran and Israel an off-ramp from the crisis over the assassination of Haniyeh. Yet IRGC officials sound a different note.
"The orders of the Leader of the Revolution regarding severe punishment of the occupiers and take revenge for the blood of Martyr Haniyeh are crystal clear,” Ali Fadavi, IRGC deputy chief, said Friday. “The orders of the Leader of the Revolution will be implemented in the best possible way and this is the duty of Iran now.”
Most Popular
Comments / 0