Iran says expects Hezbollah to hit deeper inside Israel
The Hindu
Hezbollah expected to target deeper in Israel after Israeli strike kills commander, escalating tensions in the region.
Iran said on August 3 it expects Lebanon's Tehran-backed Hezbollah group to hit deeper inside Israel and no longer be confined to military targets after Israel killed the Hezbollah military commander.
Hezbollah has been exchanging near-daily fire with Israeli forces, saying it is targeting military positions over the border, since its Palestinian ally Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, sparking war in Gaza.
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But a strike claimed by Israel in an overcrowded residential area of South Beirut changed the calculus, Iran's mission to the United Nations said.
"We expect... Hezbollah to choose more targets and (strike) deeper in its response," said the mission quoted by the official IRNA news agency.
"Secondly, that it will not limit its response to military targets."
The strike on Tuesday killed Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr. According to Lebanon's health ministry, five civilians -- three women and two children — also died.
