Iran’s supreme leader on Friday praised the country’s recent missile strike on Israel and said it was ready to do it again if necessary, state TV reported. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in his first appearance as leader, in about five years, at Friday prayers, called the missile strike a “shining” job by Iran’s armed forces.
On the other hand Israel carried out a series of massive airstrikes overnight, hitting suburbs of Beirut and cutting off the main border crossing between Lebanon and Syria for tens of thousands of people fleeing Israeli bombardment.
The Israeli military said Friday that a strike in Beirut the day before killed Mohammed Rashid Skafi, the head of Hezbollah’s communications division. The military said in a statement that Skafi was “a senior Hezbollah terrorist who was responsible for the communications unit since 2000” and was “closely affiliated” with high-up Hezbollah officials.
On Tuesday, Iran launched at least 180 missiles at Israel, the latest in a series of rapidly escalating attacks between Israel and Iran and its allies that threaten to push the Middle East closer to a region-wide war.
Israel said it intercepted many of the missiles, and officials in Washington said US destroyers assisted in Israel’s defence. Iran said most of its missiles hit their targets. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
Khamenei, 80, said in a 40-minute speech to thousands of people at the Mosalla mosque, the main prayer site in Tehran, that the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel nearly a year ago on Oct 7, 2023, was a legitimate action by the Palestinian people. He said Tuesday’s missile barrage was based on international law, the country’s law and Islamic beliefs.
He urged nations from “Afghanistan to Yemen and from Iran to Gaza and Yemen” to be ready to take action against the enemy, and praised those who had died doing so. “Our resisting people in Lebanon and Palestine, you brave fighters, you loyal and patient people, these martyrdoms and the blood that was shed shouldn’t shake your determination but make you more persistent,” he said.
Khamenei gave half of the speech in Arabic as he addressed his comments to Arab nations. Khamenei’s last appearance at Friday prayers was after the death of Revolutionary Guard Gen Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in 2020 in a United States drone strike in Baghdad.
A ceremony commemorating the death of Lebanese Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was held before Khamenei’s speech. Most high-ranking Iranian officials, including President Masoud Pezeshkian and top Revolutionary Guard generals, attended the ceremony. Iran is Hezbollah’s main backer and has sent weapons and billions of dollars to the group.
Also on Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Beirut, Lebanon, where he was expected to discuss ongoing fighting between Israel and Hezbollah with Lebanese officials. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei, said Iran sent a shipment of aid to Lebanon, including 10 tons of food and medicine.
The blasts in Beirut’s southern suburbs by Israel sent huge plumes of smoke and flames into the night sky and shook buildings km (miles) away in the Lebanese capital. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on what the intended target was, and there was no information immediately available on casualties. Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported there were more than 10 consecutive airstrikes in the area.
The new wave of strikes came after Israel warned people to evacuate communities in southern Lebanon, including but also beyond an area that the United Nations declared a buffer zone after Israel and Hezbollah fought a month-long war in 2006.
Israel declared war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip in response to their Oct 7 attack. More than 41,000 Palestinians have since been killed in the territory, and just over half the dead have been women and children, according to local health officials. Nearly 2,000 people have been killed in Lebanon in that time, most of them since Sept 23, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.
