If Iran will want to avenge the death of its top nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, or Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, it would do so by itself and does not need help from its proxies, Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hezbollah, said on Sunday.
Speaking to an event to commemorate a year since Soleimani’s assassination, Nasrallah said: “Iran is a strong country… If it will want to attack, it doesn’t need to rely on others.
“I want you to know,” he said, “Iran does not need its proxies – its friends and allies. It will respond in the right place and time, and however it wants,” he said.
Israel has braced for possible retaliation by Iran or its proxies for Soleimani’s assassination.
Throughout Sunday, ceremonies and protests were held near Lebanon’s border with Israel to commemorate the assassination and the IDF declared Metulla, a town on the border, a closed military zone for some two hours.
According to the IDF, the decision was taken because a large crowd had gathered on the Lebanese side of the border. It added that at no point were citizens asked to evacuate the area, but the move also prevented outsiders entering Metulla.
On Saturday, a senior military source told The Jerusalem Post that the IDF was readying for an attack by Iran or its proxies in what the army calls the “second circle countries” such as Iraq or Yemen.
The source noted that at this stage, the IDF has held discussions at planning level and has reviewed possible scenarios of different attacks.
In mid-December, Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi warned Iran and its proxies that if they try to strike at Israel or Israeli targets, they will be attacked by the IDF and pay a heavy price.
“We are hearing more and more threats against Israel coming from Iran,” he said. “If Iran and its partners... attack the State of Israel, they will [pay] a heavy price.
“I am simplifying things and describing the situation to our enemies,” he added. “Our retaliation plans are prepared, and they have been rehearsed.”