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Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian warned that opening other fronts in the Israel-Hamas war was a “real possibility” as Israel intensified its retaliatory attacks on the Gaza Strip, sparking fears that the conflict would turn into a regional war.
“With the continuation of aggression, war crimes and the siege of Gaza, the opening of other fronts is a real possibility,” Amir-Abdollahian late Thursday said upon arriving in Beirut, Lebanon, where he traveled to meet leaders of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, according to Iran’s state news agency IRNA.
“I will discuss the situation in Gaza with the Lebanese authorities,” Amir-Abdollahian said. “Iran strongly continues its political and media support for the Palestinian resistance.”
A long-standing backer of both Hamas and Hezbollah, Iran has denied any involvement in the surprise incursion into Israel by Hamas last weekend.
The Iranian minister’s statement comes as Israel’s army issued an order for civilians to leave northern Gaza and evacuate to the south of the Palestinian enclave, amid growing expectations that Israel is set to launch a ground assault on the Gaza Strip in retaliation for the Hamas attack. More than 1,300 people in Israel have died in the incursion by Hamas that started last Saturday.
Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has ordered a “complete siege” of Gaza, limiting all access to food, fuel and water to the more than 2 million residents while launching thousands of airstrikes, killing more than 1,500 people.
The United Nations has called on Israel to reverse course, with a spokesperson saying an evacuation “could transform what is already a tragedy into a calamitous situation.”
Before the evacuation call, the United States joined France in urging Israel to show restraint in retaliating against Hamas.
Meanwhile, Egypt is resisting calls for it to allow civilians to flee Gaza across its border through the Rafah crossing, with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi telling Palestinians to “stay steadfast and remain on [their] land.”
After meeting with Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Hoballah, on Friday morning, Amir-Abdollahian called on the United States — a staunch Israel ally — to restrain Israel in order to avoid a regional conflict.
“If the Americans want to prevent the war in the region from developing, they must control Israel,” Amir-Abdollahian said, according to French newswire Agence France-Presse. Tehran was aiming to preserve Lebanon’s safety, he added.
