Live Update 
From the Liveblog of
Thursday, August 22, 2024
From the Liveblog of
Thursday, August 22, 2024
Iran may delay its revenge on Israel, but is pushing Hezbollah to attack — report
People walk past a banner featuring a picture of the late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed last month while in Iran, in Tehran on August 20, 2024. (Atta KENARE / AFP)
While Iran may have been convinced to delay directly attacking Israel, it is encouraging Hezbollah to launch a strike, US officials tell The Washington Post.
Hezbollah terror chief Hassan Nasrallah is aiming to carry out a focused attack — to avenge the assassination of his top commander Fuad Shukr last month — instead of firing a barrage of rockets at a city like Tel Aviv and risking regional war, the officials say.
Meanwhile, Iran is at the moment deterred from directly attacking Israel in response to the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh hours after Shukr was killed, after an enormous US military build-up in the region, the officials state.
Israel has not confirmed or denied involvement in Haniyeh’s death.
