Iran rejects Western calls to stand down Israel threat
The Hindu
Iran vows retaliation against Israel for killing Hamas leader, escalating tensions in the Middle East.
Iran on Tuesday (August 13, 2024) rejected Western calls to stand down its threat to retaliate against Israel for the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran late last month.
The Islamic republic and its allies have blamed Israel for Haniyeh's killing on July 31 during a visit to the Iranian capital for the swearing-in of President Masoud Pezeshkian. Israel has not commented.
Iran has vowed to avenge the death, which came hours after an Israeli strike in Beirut killed a senior commander of Hezbollah, the powerful Iran-backed militant group in Lebanon.
Western diplomats have scrambled to prevent a major conflagration in the Middle East, where tensions are already high due to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
In a statement on Monday (August 12, 2024), the United States and its European allies urged Iran to de-escalate.
The White House warned that a "significant set of attacks" by Iran and its allies was possible as soon as this week, saying Israel shared the same assessment.
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