Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has called for "revenge" after the killing of Hezbollah's top military commander in an Israeli strike on Beirut.
Hezbollah was mourning on Monday its senior commander, Haitham Ali Tabatabai, who was killed in a strike on the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital. The attack was the biggest escalation since a fragile ceasefire came into effect about a year ago.
"The right of the Axis of Resistance and Lebanese Hezbollah to avenge the blood of the brave fighters of Islam is unquestionable," the IRGC, Hezbollah's main military and financial backer, said in a statement, referring to Iran-backed armed groups in the region.
Tabatabai had risen in rank during Israel's war with Hezbollah, which decimated most of the upper echelon of the group. Israel killed Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah's leader since 1992, and some of his senior allies.
Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, made similar remarks on Sunday, calling for confrontation with Israel. "They have achieved what they desired, but [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu continues his adventures until everyone realises that no path remains except to confront this fabricated entity," Mr Larijani said, referring to Israel.
A US-brokered ceasefire ended 12 days of war between Iran and Israel in June, but both sides have since issued belligerent remarks. The conflict marked the first direct confrontation between the countries. Until then, fighting had been played out between Israel and Tehran's regional proxies, including Hezbollah, Houthi rebels in Yemen and, to a lesser extent, militia groups in Iraq.
The strike on Sunday hit an apartment building in a busy area of Beirut. It came after about five months of calm in the city's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, with Israel having launched an attack in June.
The office of Mr Netanyahu said he ordered the attack on the recommendation of Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz and army chief Eyal Zamir. “Israel is determined to act to achieve its objectives everywhere and at all times,” the office said.
The calls for revenge come amid diplomatic efforts between Iran and western countries. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is to hold talks with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot in Paris this week, France's Foreign Ministry said Monday.
"Foreign Minister Araghchi will travel to France on Wednesday and hold talks with the minister," the ministry said. The meeting will be an opportunity to urge Iran to resume its co-operation with the UN nuclear watchdog, it added.
