Axios’ predictions, according to which American and Israeli officials would have dated the start of Iran’s attack on the morning of August 5, did not come true. Biden was asked outside his home in Delaware before returning to the White House if he thought Iran would limit its threats to Israel and he replied: “I hope so, I don’t know.” In fact, there are two events that are still pending before an Iranian response to Israel. The Meeting with Shoigu and the meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Jeddah on August 7.
Iran has put its demands on the table, if anyone is able to listen to them: nuclear power and the end of sanctions. It is certainly ready to mediate. But if neither of these two options are on the negotiating table, it will give its response to Israel, first the Islamic Resistance will start in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq together with the Houthis and Hezbollah. Then there will be a response from Iran, the stakes are too high to do nothing. China has already said that an American attack on Iran will have a response and for now it has moved its ships in the South China Sea. Pakistan supports Iran militarily. Russia will tip the scales and the US offer will close the circle.
The head of the US Army Central Command, General Kurilla, has arrived in the Middle East to coordinate and plan actions in the event of an Iranian attack on Israel, as well as to take stock of available weapons and ammunition. Jonathan Finer, US deputy national security adviser, in an interview with CBS: “We are moving an aircraft carrier to the Middle East for defense purposes. The goal is to calm the atmosphere in the region.”
The Pentagon said Friday that Defense Secretary Austin has ordered the deployment of the aircraft carrier CVN 72 Abraham Lincoln to the region to replace the aircraft carrier CVN 71 Theodore Roosevelt operating off the coast of Iran. Also Axios: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his G7 counterparts that Iran and Hezbollah could launch attacks on Israel within 24 to 48 hours.
A pair of British Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets have entered Israeli airspace. According to British TV channel inews, Foreign Secretary David Lemmy has drawn up plans to evacuate thousands of British citizens from Lebanon in the event of an escalation in the Middle East.
Several Arab sources have reported that Pakistan plans to supply Shaheen-III medium-range ballistic missiles to Iran if the conflict between Iran and Israel escalates. On August 5, four US Air Force aircraft landed in Jordan, including three military transport aircraft (two C-17s and a C-130J).
Iran puts Netanyahu and his son Yair on the list of the dead. Mohsen Rezaei, spokesman for the parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy, announced the second meeting of the Islamic Council’s committee on national security and foreign policy on the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh and said: “The meeting of the Islamic Council’s committee on national security and foreign policy will be held today at noon a council on the issue of investigating the incident with the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh with the participation of representatives of the Quds Force, the Ministry of Information and some other institutions
Meanwhile, Iran is experiencing GPS interference. Iran has issued a warning to airlines about the expected GPS disruptions in the Tehran area and called on aircraft in the west, southwest, south and center of Iran to find alternative flight routes.
A senior Iranian official told Al Jazeera: “Iran will convey two messages to Jordanian Foreign Minister al-Safadi: the first to the Jordanian leadership and the second to the United States and Israel. There is no doubt that Tehran will avoid responding or will undertake a symbolic response; any response will be harsh and painful.”
He added that “Israel is now trying to force Tehran not to respond, to paint us as a weak country with no real deterrence. It has crossed all the borders and must pay the price. We have no doubt that it will pay dearly.” Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also weighed in: “The murder of Haniyeh when he was a guest in Tehran was a big mistake and will not go unanswered.”
An emergency meeting of the foreign ministers of Islamic countries will be held in Jeddah on August 7. A Russian delegation headed by Sergey Shoigu arrived in Tehran on August 5. The Tasnim news agency quoted the Secretariat of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council as saying that the purpose of the visit is “enhancing interactions and discussing regional issues and international and bilateral political and security relations.”
Meanwhile, the investigation into Haniyeh’s murder continues. According to the Iranian opposition website Iran International: “Iranian counterintelligence agents raided an apartment building on the Tuchal Ridge overlooking the guest house where Haniyeh was killed. An employee of the building said that at 5 a.m., three hours after the murder, Iranian security forces arrived, demanded all camera footage, and detained and interrogated everyone at the scene on suspicion of involvement in the murder.”
On the afternoon of August 5, the Iranian Air Force began putting its attack aircraft on alert. Iran confirmed that it had informed the embassies of Arab countries (including Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates) that it does not care if the war of revenge turns into the start of a regional war. It was also said that they would be targeted even if they intervened in response to Israeli actions.
Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth: says at least 10,000 Israeli soldiers have been killed or wounded during months of fighting in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli Ministry of State Security is building an underground shelter in Jerusalem for the country’s leadership, just in case.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his citizens on August 4: “Citizens of Israel, In recent years, and even more so in recent weeks, Israel has been preparing for the possibility of a direct attack by Iran. Our defense systems are deployed, we are ready for any scenario, both defensively and offensively. The State of Israel is strong, the IDF is strong, public opinion is strong. We appreciate the support of the United States, as well as that of the United Kingdom, France and many other countries. I have established a clear principle: whoever hurts us, we hurt. We will protect ourselves from any threat and we will do so with coolness and determination.”
He then added: “I know that you, Israeli citizens, also remain calm. I urge you to heed the directives of the Home Front Command. Together we will resist and, with God’s help, together we will defeat all our enemies.”
Israeli Transport Minister Miri Regev reported that in the event of an escalation, “We will reinforce the centers of Athens and Cyprus with air force planes and sea ferries. Perhaps as early as next week. Israel has informed a third country in Europe; if Iran attacks our civilian targets, we will bomb their nuclear facilities!”
Lebanese sources say that fearing the transfer of information to Israel, Hezbollah has launched a massive wave of arrests of its members suspected of transmitting “important” information. An Israeli official told NBC News: “One of the issues is several shipments of missiles and drones from Iran and Hezbollah that will be deployed in a few days.”
The Houthis, who have been silent in recent days, resumed their attacks starting on August 3. They hit a ship and shot down an MQ-9 drone on August 4 in the Zada region, in the north of the country. This is the seventh American drone shot down by the Houthis since the beginning of the war. Iran’s close-to-IRGC Tasnim news agency reports that: Hossein Mastoor al-Shaabal, an Ansar Allah (Houthi) commander, was killed in a US strike last week in the Babylon region last week in Iraq
And now a look at the situation between Israel – Hamas – Hezbollah updated at 16:30 on August 5.
Two Israeli soldiers were injured. One seriously in the head and the other moderately. A total of 7 Israeli soldiers were injured, 4 of them in serious condition, after a Hamas member threw a bomb or grenade at them in the southern Gaza Strip.
This morning, an Israeli drone strike targeted the cemetery in the village of Mays al-Jabal. The attack killed a doctor and a visiting Hezbollah member.
The IDF showed a video of a massive tunnel discovered near the border with Egypt, which has said it will not participate in Israel’s defense against Iran. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is visiting Egypt on August 5.
The IDF said in a statement: “After sirens sounded at 11:50 in northern Israel, the IDF Aerial Defense Array successfully intercepted a suspected air target that crossed into Lebanon in the Metula area of northern Israel. Sirens were sounded for rocket and missile launches due to the risk of shrapnel falling from interceptors. In parallel, an additional suspicious air target was identified and intercepted in the coastal area of Nahariyya. No sirens were sounded according to protocol. After the sirens sounded at 10:05 in northern Israel, numerous projectiles crossed Lebanon into Israeli territory. The IDF Aerial Defense Array successfully intercepted the projectiles. No injuries were reported. Early this morning, IDF soldiers identified a Hamas cell using a drone in the Meiss El Jabal area in southern Lebanon. Shortly after the identification, the IAF struck and eliminated the terrorists.”
Returning to the armed clashes, the al-Qassam Brigades showed that they had fired grenade launchers at Israeli Namer heavy infantry fighting vehicles.
The Islamic Resistance targeted the Ras al-Naqoura site with missiles. According to Lebanese sources, Israeli artillery targeted the western outskirts of the city of Les Talus, Lebanon with a phosphorus shell, which started a fire.
Israeli attacks against border towns in southern Lebanon from dawn until 2:30 p.m. on August 5 after a night of Hezbollah launching shells against Israeli sites. Israel hits: Kafr Kila; cemetery in the city of Mays al-Jabal; Israeli artillery targeted the outskirts of Kafr Shuba and Kafr Hamam; the city of Aitaroun; the outskirts of Naqoura; with a phosphorus shell the vicinity of the “Sarda” farm near the Wazzani Plain.
Starting at 10:40 p.m. on August 4, Hezbollah began launching shells against settlements in northern Israel. The attack on the “Elliit” barracks occurred amid a very high Israeli alert and an invitation to American ships to use their radars. An officer and a soldier were injured following the explosion of a drone in the “Ayelet Hashahar” area in the Upper Galilee during the night, a Hezbollah drone attack 30 kilometers from the border. Sirens sounded in Margaliot and Kiryat Shemona in the Finger of Galilee.
CNN: “According to Israeli military sources and analysis, Hamas groups in the central Gaza Strip suffered the least damage in the Strip. Israeli sources say they have not “managed” these battalions adequately because they believe they are holding many Israeli hostages.”
Hamas sources report: “Seven Israeli soldiers were ambushed in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. Some are reportedly in critical and serious condition.” The same sources reported that: “Qassams managed to detonate an anti-personnel device against soldiers barricaded inside a building, causing one death or one injury. Clashes continue with forces penetrating east of the Faraheen area, east of the city of Khan Yunis. south of the Gaza Strip.” Anti-personnel devices used by Hamas in “Zalata” east of the city of Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.
Qassam attacks in Tal al-Hawa, south of Gaza City.
Antonio Albanese e Graziella Giangiulio
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