Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian accused Israel of using “mindless terrorism” to cover up its losses in its war on Gaza. Abdollahian’s statement on Sunday, January 21, came after five members of its Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) were killed in an Israeli air strike in Damascus a day before.
Abdollahian claimed that, “although the Zionist enemy has destroyed Gaza on a large scale and martyred tens of thousands of people, it has not achieved any of its goals, so it is trying to make up for its defeat by resorting to blind terrorism,” Press TV reported.
IRGC said in a statement on Saturday that at least five of its “military advisors” were killed when an Israeli air raid hit a building in Damascus’ Mezzeh neighborhood.
IRGC and Iranian officials stated that they reserved their right to respond to the terrorist attack.
Israel has killed over 25,000 Palestinians and injured over 62,000 since the beginning of its war on Gaza on October 7. It has repeatedly targeted neighboring Arab countries such as Syria and Lebanon as well.
Israeli attacks inside several countries in the region have heightened concerns of a regional escalation of the war in Gaza.
Identifying Israel as the primary reason for regional insecurity and terrorism, Abdollahian claimed that “the activities of Iran’s military advisors to fight terrorism and ensure the security of the region will continue with strength” despite the killings on Saturday.
On Saturday itself, an Israeli drone strike killed a senior Hezbollah member in Nabatieh in southern Lebanon. The deceased, identified as Fadhi Ali Salman Sha’ar, was a member of the Hezbollah unit responsible for transfer of leadership.
Over 140 Lebanese, including some Hezbollah fighters, have been killed in Israeli attacks since October 7. At least eight IRGC officials have been killed in Israeli attacks inside Syria in the same period.
Hezbollah in Lebanon and IRGC in Iran have carried out retaliatory attacks against Israeli targets. Hezbollah has been able to inflict significant losses on the Israeli army in these attacks.
On Sunday, Hezbollah claimed that it targeted an “Israeli force in the vicinity of the Zarit barracks that was preparing to carry out an aggression inside Lebanese territory.” The statement reported by Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) claimed that the attack caused confirmed casualties in Israeli army ranks.
IRGC also carried out a missile attack on an alleged bases of the Israeli spy agency Mossad on January 15 in Erbil in northern Iraq. IRGC had claimed that the Erbil center was used by Israel to carry out attacks inside Iran and at different other parts of the region including in the assassination of senior Hamas leader Saleh al-Arouri.
Israel’s closest ally, the US, in collaboration with the UK, is already carrying out airstrikes in Yemen claiming to target Houthi locations. The US has redesignated the Houthis as a terrorist organization.
The Houthis have been attacking ships sailing through the Red sea to Israel in solidarity with the Palestinians since October 17. Their attack has substantially affected the movement of ships through the Red Sea and the operations of Israeli ports.
Meanwhile, US bases in the region, particularly in Syria and Iraq have been repeatedly attacked by the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) in Iraq and other militias in opposition to its support to the Israeli war in Gaza.
On Saturday, hours within the Israeli strike in Damascus, Ain al-Assad Air Base used by the US came under missile and rocket attacks injuring US personnel and one Iraqi soldier, US Central Command said in a statement.