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Iranian FM: Killing of IRGC No. 2 Will ‘Not Go Unanswered’
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi looks on before a meeting with Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, in Tehran, Iran, Aug. 26, 2024. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
JNS.org – Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that the death of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps deputy commander Brig. Gen. Abbas Nilforoushan in Beirut on Friday “will not go unanswered.”
Nilforoushan was killed by an Israeli airstrike alongside Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Ali Karaki, the Iranian-backed terror group’s highest-ranking military commander.
“There is no doubt that this horrible crime committed by the Zionist regime [Israel] will not go unanswered,” said Araghchi in a statement addressed to IRGC chief Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami, according to Reuters.
Earlier on Sunday, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said that the “axis of resistance,” which includes Hezbollah, Hamas, Yemen’s Houthi rebels and other terrorist groups across the Middle East, would avenge Nasrallah and Nilforoushan’s deaths.
“We will not hesitate to go to any level in order to help the resistance,” the Iranian politician stated, adding that the United States “is complicit in all of these crimes and … has to accept the repercussions.”
Meanwhile, Iranian Vice President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif told state media on Sunday that the regime would retaliate against the Jewish state at a time of its choosing, according to Reuters.
The New York Times reported on Sunday that Iranian officials are divided on how to respond to the assassination of their close ally, with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei saying Hezbollah, not Tehran, would lead the response to the attack.
“It will be Hezbollah, at the helm of the resistance forces, that will determine the fate of the region,” said Khamenei, adding that “Lebanon will make the aggressor and the evil enemy regretful.”
The Times report, which cited four Iranian officials, including IRGC operatives, said that while some members of the country’s Supreme National Security Council supported a swift attack during a meeting on Friday, others opposed the proposal, believing that this would mean falling into a “trap” set by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Others warned that an attack on the Jewish state could draw a response from the Israel Defense Forces, potentially damaging Iran’s vital infrastructure.
On Saturday, Khamenei was transferred to a location with heightened security, Reuters said over the weekend, citing two regional officials.
Also on Saturday, an Iranian plane heading for Beirut made a U-turn over Iraq on Saturday after the Israel Defense Forces warned air traffic control at Rafic Hariri International Airport not to grant it permission to land, a Lebanese government source told Reuters.
The source said it was not clear what or who was on the Qeshm Fars Air flight. Western intelligence sources have accused Tehran of using the airline to transport weapons to Hezbollah under the cover of civilian aviation.
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Riding Anti-Trump Wave, Australia’s Albanese Secures 2nd term
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks to the media during a press conference with New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon at the Australian Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, Aug. 16, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Tracey Nearmy
i24 News – Australia’s Anthony Albanese claimed a second term as prime minister on Saturday, in a comeback against once-resurgent conservatives that commentators said was powered by voters’ concerns about the impact of US President Donald Trump.
Peter Dutton, leader of the conservative Liberal party, conceded defeat and the loss of his own seat, echoing the fate of Canada’s conservatives and their leader Pierre Poilievre, whose election losses last week were also widely attributed to a Trump backlash.
Supporters at Labor’s election party in Sydney cheered and hugged each other as Albanese claimed victory and said his party would form a majority government.
“Our government will choose the Australian way, because we are proud of who we are and all that we have built together in this country,” Albanese told supporters.
The Australian Electoral Commission website projected Labor would win 81 of 150 seats in the House of Representatives, increasing its majority in parliament, with 68% of the vote counted.
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Israeli PM Netanyahu Postpones Upcoming Visit to Azerbaijan
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Prime Minister’s office in Jerusalem, Feb. 16, 2025. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has postponed next week’s visit to Azerbaijan, his office announced on Saturday, in part due to recent developments in Gaza and Syria.
The prime minister’s office also cited “the intense diplomatic and security schedule” and said that the visit would be rescheduled, without announcing a new date.
Netanyahu was to visit Azerbaijan from May 7-11 and was expected to meet with President Ilham Aliyev. Israel and Azerbaijan maintain close security and energy ties.
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Israel Says It Intercepted Missile Fired from Yemen; Houthis Claim Responsibility
Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi addresses followers via a video link at the al-Shaab Mosque, formerly al-Saleh Mosque, in Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 6, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Israel’s military said on Saturday it intercepted a missile fired from Yemen and Houthi forces claimed responsibility for the attack, the third of its kind by the Iran-aligned group in 24 hours.
The Israeli military said sirens were activated in a number of areas in Israel after the missile was launched. No casualties or serious damage have been reported from the missile salvos.
The claim of responsibility, announced by the Houthis’ military spokesperson, came amid an intensification of US airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen.
In March, US President Donald Trump ordered large-scale strikes against the Houthis to reduce their capabilities and deter them from targeting commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
The deadly strikes on the group have been the biggest US military operation in the Middle East since Trump took office in January.
The Houthis say their attacks on Israel and Red Sea shipping are in solidarity with the Palestinians in the war between Hamas terrorists and Israel in Gaza.
The group pledged to expand its range of targets in Israel in retaliation for a renewed Israeli offensive in Gaza launched in mid-March, breaking a two-month-old ceasefire after the mediated talks on terms for extending it broke down.
The post Israel Says It Intercepted Missile Fired from Yemen; Houthis Claim Responsibility first appeared on Algemeiner.com.