Iran allies await Khamenei's response to Israeli strike in Syria: Abu Fadak
Shafaq News/ The head of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), Abdul Aziz al-Mohammedawi, known by his nom de guerre "Abu Fadak," said on Friday that they are awaiting a decision from Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on how to respond to the Israeli airstrike that targeted the Iranian embassy's consular office in Damascus.
"What is happening now between all the resistance groups in Yemen, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, and also in the Islamic Republic of Iran is a declaration of the end of Israel," Abu Fadak told media outlets in Iran on Friday.
"We are waiting for the decision of the Iranian leader to see what's next and what the response will be to Israel's attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus and the killing of some of the IRGC's commanders," he added.
The statement came as Iranian state television reported that the death toll from the attack on the consulate building has risen to 13, including seven Iranians and six Syrian citizens.
Earlier, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi declared that the" cowardly crime will not go unanswered."
"Having failed to destroy the will of the resistance front, the Zionist regime [Israel] has put blind assassinations back on its agenda to save itself," he said.
Hezbollah, the Iran-affiliated armed group that has been swapping attacks with Israel across the border with Lebanon since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, joined in, warning that the attack on the Iranian diplomatic premises" will not pass without the enemy receiving punishment and revenge price."
Israel has not declared responsibility for the Syria attack, which destroyed the consular building adjacent to the main embassy building in the upscale Mezzeh district of Damascus on Monday night.
However, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant struck a defiant tone in comments made on Tuesday, albeit without mentioning Iran.
Israel is in a war on multiple fronts "both offensively and defensively," he told parliament's Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee.
"We operate everywhere, every day, in order to prevent our enemies from gaining strength and in order to make it clear to anyone who acts against us – all over the Middle East – that the price for action against Israel will be a heavy one."
The attack has further complicated the situation in the Middle East, where tension has been bubbling since the onset of the Gaza war in October.
Tehran has been trying to avoid a direct conflict with Israel, while backing allies that have engaged with Israeli and US targets. But it is feared that the latest incident could widen hostilities.
