US officials say Israel is likely to target a retaliatory attack on Iranian military and energy sites

Washington: As Israel weighs its options for retaliating against Iran for its rocket attack earlier this month, US officials believe Israel has narrowed its targets to Tehran’s military and energy infrastructure, according to a report by NBC. This comes as the Middle East remains on high alert for further escalation in a year of war in which Israel is battling the Iran-backed groups Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

Israel has repeatedly said it would respond to Iran’s rocket fire on October 1, which was fired in retaliation for Israel’s military operations in Gaza and Lebanon and the killing of a number of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders. According to the report, U.S. and Israeli officials said a response could occur during the current Yom Kippur holiday.

There are no signs that Israel will target nuclear facilities or carry out assassinations, unnamed U.S. officials told NBC, adding that Israel has not yet made final decisions about how and when to proceed. Meanwhile, Hezbollah said on Sunday it was fighting Israeli forces trying to enter the village of Ramya in southern Lebanon. Israel also said five launches from Lebanon were intercepted by its air force.

The Israeli military said it continued to operate in southern Lebanon to dismantle “terrorist infrastructure.” “Over the past day, the IAF (Air Force) struck about 200 Hezbollah targets deep in Lebanon and southern Lebanon, including terrorist cells, launch pads, anti-tank missile posts and terrorist infrastructure sites,” it said.

Israel has stepped up military operations in recent weeks, bombing southern Lebanon, Beirut’s southern suburbs and the Bekaa Valley, killing many of Hezbollah’s top leaders and sending ground troops across the border. Hezbollah, for its part, has fired rockets deeper into Israel.

According to the Lebanese government, Israel’s expanded operation has displaced more than 1.2 million people. In over a year of fighting, more than 2,100 people were killed and 10,000 injured. The number of victims does not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but also includes numerous women and children.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expressed “deep concern” in a phone call with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Saturday about reports that Israeli forces had fired on U.N. peacekeeping positions in Lebanon in recent days and called on Israel to ensure security for them and to ensure the Lebanese military, the Pentagon said. According to the UNIFIL peacekeeping mission, five peacekeepers have been injured in three separate incidents since Thursday.

The fighting in the region, involving all Tehran-allied militant groups – Hezbollah, the Houthis in Yemen and armed groups in Iraq – has raised fears that the United States and Iran are moving into a full-scale conflict in the oil-producing Middle East be drawn into East.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq said in a statement on Sunday that it had attacked a military site in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights with drones as part of its support for the Palestinian people and Lebanon. It was said that attacks on Israeli strongholds would continue to escalate.

The war in Gaza began after a Hamas-led attack on southern Israeli communities on October 7, 2023, in which, according to Israel, 1,200 people were killed and about 250 were taken hostage. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, the Israeli military campaign in Gaza aimed at destroying the militant group Hamas has killed more than 42,000 Palestinians and devastated the enclave.

(Reuters)

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