Middle East Crisis LIVE updates: Not looking to escalate regional tensions, but must ‘punish’ Israel says Iran

Israel Iran News LIVE: Flares of the Israeli army light up the sky of the area bordering Lebanon on August 3, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Lebanon’s Hezbollah fighters.

Iran has vowed to take “revenge” over the killing of Hamas chief and said that the retaliatory operations were expected to be “more diverse, more dispersed and impossible to intercept.” The country is expected to attack Israel anytime. Along with this, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have accused Israel of being behind the incidents, warning them of a “severe punishment at the appropriate place and manner”.

The country’s foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday that Iran is not looking to escalate regional tensions but believes it must ‘punish’ Israel to prevent further instability.

On Sunday, Hezbollah launched dozens of Katyusha rockets at Israel, the latest in a series of attacks – in response to Israel’s attacks on Kfar Kela and Deir Siriane in Lebanon a day prior. Israel resorted to the Iron Dome air defence system to intercept the attack.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to the foreign ministers of G7 countries via video call on Sunday amid rising tensions. This comes as the US announced plans to deploy additional warships and fighter jets to Israel.

Ismail Haniyeh was killed on July 31 after he had attended the swearing-in of the new Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, in Tehran. The 62-year-old, who lived in Qatar, was the head of the political bureau of Hamas, which has governed the Gaza Strip since 2007. On Saturday, Iran said that Haniyeh was killed in Tehran using a “short-range projectile” launched from outside of his accommodation. Prior to Haniyeh’s killing, Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr was killed in an Israeli air strike in Beirut on July 30.

Meanwhile, several nations have issued advisories and helpline numbers for their nationals living in the Middle East, urging them to leave the country immediately.