Iran warns it will be forced to take 'pre-emptive action' against Israel in 'the coming hours' as Jewish nation prepares for ground offensive on the Gaza Strip - sparking fears of wider conflict in the Middle East
Tehran has repeatedly warned that an invasion of Gaza would be met with a response from other fronts
By Iwan Stone and Mark Nicol
Daily Mail
Oct 16, 2023
Gaza continues to sustain devastating airstrikes ahead of the planned ground invasion
Iran has warned it could be forced to take 'pre-emptive action' against Israel in the 'coming hours' as the Jewish nation prepares for a ground offensive on the Gaza strip.
Tehran has repeatedly warned that an invasion of Gaza would be met with a response from other fronts - after a day where Israel also faced threats from Lebanon in the north.
The declarations of intent have rapidly heightened tensions in the fraught Middle East, sparking fears of a wider conflict in the coming days.
It comes as the United States have told 2,000 troops to be prepared to deploy to the war-torn corner of the world and moved a second aircraft carrier to the eastern Mediterranean.
Iran's foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian - referring to his meeting with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Saturday - said: 'The possibility of pre-emptive action by the resistance axis is expected in the coming hours.'
Tehran has repeatedly warned that an invasion of Gaza would be met with a response from other fronts - after a day where Israel also faced threats from Lebanon in the north. Pictured: An injured Palestinian boy sits on the ground at the emergency room of the al-Shifa hospital
The declarations of intent have rapidly heightened tensions in the fraught Middle East, sparking fears of a wider conflict in the coming days. Pictured: Wounded Palestinians arrive at al-Shifa hospital,
European governments have warned the nations to take all necessary measures to avert war. Pictured: Smoke billows after an Israeli air strike in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip
He said that 'the resistance leaders' will not allow Israel 'to do whatever it wants in Gaza'.
Iran's president Ebrahim Raisi also warned that time was running out to reach a political solution and warned against the expansion of the Israel-Hamas war to other fronts.
But European governments have warned the nations to take all necessary measures to avert war.
France's Foreign Finister Catherine Colonna - speaking from Beirut - said: 'Lebanese officials have a responsibility... to do everything possible to prevent Lebanon from being dragged into a spiral.'
Repeated fire in recent days has claimed lives on both sides of the UN-patrolled border between Lebanon and Israel, which remain technically at war.
If Israel does invade the Palestinian enclave of Gaza in its war on Hamas, Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah movement has warned it may escalate its military involvement.
And Germany warned Iran not to 'pour oil on the fire' of the Israel-Hamas war, after the country's foreign minister met with high-ranking Hamas officials.
'Anyone who wants to play with fire in this situation and pour oil on the fire or ignite it in any other way should really think twice because we are facing a potentially major regional conflict,' foreign ministry spokesman Sebastian Fischer said.
But - in a day fraught with tension - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Iran and Lebanon's terror group Hezbollah not to 'test us' in the north.
Repeated fire in recent days has claimed lives on both sides of the UN-patrolled border between Lebanon and Israel, which remain technically at war. Pictured: An injured Palestinian child is taken to Al-Aqsa Hospital
If Israel does invade the Palestinian enclave of Gaza in its war on Hamas, Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah movement has warned it may escalate its military involvement. Pictured: An injured Palestinian child is taken to Al-Aqsa Hospital
Germany warned Iran not to 'pour oil on the fire' of the Israel-Hamas war, after the country's foreign minister met with high-ranking Hamas officials. Pictured: An injured Palestinian child is taken to Al-Aqsa Hospital
In a day fraught with tension - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Iran and Lebanon's terror group Hezbollah not to 'test us' in the north. Pictured: Bodies of people killed in the attack by Hamas on southern Israel await identification
Speaking to the Israeli Knesset today, Netanyahu warned Iran and Hezbollah, 'Don't test us in the north. Don't make the mistake of the past. Today, the price you will pay will be far heavier,' referring to Israel's 2006 war with Hezbollah.
He also called on the world to unite as it did 'to defeat the Nazis and ISIS', and admtitted that there are 'many questions surrounding' last week's disaster.
After Hamas terrorists stormed into Israel on October 7 and killed more than 1,400 people, Israel has unleashed a relentless bombing campaign of the Gaza Strip that flattened neighbourhoods and killed at least 2,750 people, mainly civilians.
Addressing parliament, Rishi Sunak condemned the Hamas 'Pogrom' as he said six Brits are confirmed dead and 10 more missing.
The PM insisted Britain will 'stand by' Israel as he insisted the country had the right to respond - although he stressed the need to avoid 'broader regional instability' and take 'every possible precaution to avoid harming civilians'.
Updating MPs after the Commons returned for the first time since the bloody attacks, Mr Sunak addressed Jewish community members in the gallery, saying: 'We stand with you, we stand with Israel.'
'The attacks in Israel last weekend shocked the world. Over 1,400 people murdered one by one, over 3,500 wounded, almost 200 taken hostage,' Mr Sunak said.
He went on: 'We should call it by its name: it was a Pogrom.
'The families of some of the missing are in the public gallery today. We call for the immediate release of all hostages and I say to them: we stand with you. We stand with Israel.'
After Hamas terrorists stormed into Israel on October 7 and killed more than 1,400 people, Israel has unleashed a relentless bombing campaign of the Gaza Strip that flattened neighbourhoods and killed at least 2,750 people, mainly civilians. Pictured: An injured Palestinian woman is taken to Al-Aqsa Hospital
The PM insisted Britain will 'stand by' Israel as he insisted the country had the right to respond Pictured: Shells from Israeli artillery explode over Dhayra village, near the Lebanese-Israeli border, Lebanon
Rishi Sunak stressed the need to avoid 'broader regional instability' and take 'every possible precaution to avoid harming civilians'. Pictured: Smoke rises from Israeli artillery shelling in Dhayra village, near the Lebanese-Israeli border
Mr Sunak (pictured) said the 'terrible nature of these attacks means it is proving difficult to identify many of the deceased'
Mr Sunak said the 'terrible nature of these attacks means it is proving difficult to identify many of the deceased'.
'But with a heavy heart I can inform the House that at least six British citizens were killed,' he said.
'A further 10 are missing, some of whom are feared to be among the dead.'
The government's stance was backed by Labour leader Keir Starmer, who said that Parliament must speak with 'one voice'.
But despite the looming threat a defiant Hamas has said the threat of invasion 'doesn't scare us and we are ready for it.'
In a televised statement, Abu Obeideh, the spokesman of Hamas's military wing, also revealed Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades were holding 200 people captive since a massive onslaught on Israel's south on October 7, with about 50 others held by other 'resistance factions and in other places'.
Army spokesman Daniel Hagari said earlier Monday Israel had been able to confirm and notify the relatives of 199 people held captives in Gaza.
According to Abu Obeideh, 'we will release the foreign prisoners when conditions are ripe'.
More than a million Palestinians have fled their homes ahead of an expected invasion of Gaza by Israeli troops. Pictured: Injured Palestinians arrive to the al-Shifa Hospital
Desperate families were seen carrying mattresses on their backs as they heeded Israel’s warning of further retaliatory military action. Pictured: Smoke rises as Israeli attacks continue during the 10th day of clashes near the Gaza border in Sderot, Israel
Air strikes have cost more than 2,750 lives and rendered half the population of Gaza refugees. Pictured: Smoke rises from various areas as Israeli attacks continue during the 10th day of clashes near the Gaza border in Sderot, Israel
He said at least 22 hostages taken from Israel had been killed in Israeli air strikes on Gaza.
The European Union has said that it will launch an humanitarian 'air bridge' to Gaza with the first flights this week, to provide 'help and aid' to millions of Palestinians trapped in the heavily bombarded enclave, President Ursula von der Leyen announced.
And Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joined calls for a humanitarian corridor to be opened into Gaza, saying urgent help was needed to address an increasingly dire situation in the enclave of 2.3 million.
President Joe Biden will travel to Israel on Wednesday to show support for the U.S. ally as concerns increase that the raging Israel-Hamas war could expand into a larger regional conflict.
Biden is looking to send the strongest message yet that the U.S. is behind Israel. His Democratic administration has pledged military support, sending U.S. carriers and aid to the region.
Officials have said they would ask Congress for upward of $2 billion in additional aid for both Israel and Ukraine, which is fighting Russia's invasion.
More than a million Palestinians have fled their homes ahead of an expected invasion of Gaza by Israeli troops.
Desperate families were seen carrying mattresses on their backs as they heeded Israel’s warning of further retaliatory military action.
1,000 remain missing, feared trapped beneath the rubble of ruined homes and offices. Pictured: Palestinians search for victims and survivors in the rubble of Al-Naqeeb family house leveled in an Israeli airstrike
Yesterday 600,000 displaced persons were reported to have reached the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis. Pictured: Palestinian children injured during Israeli raids in the southern Gaza Strip arrive in Khan Yunis
Around 400,000 are sheltering in facilities run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. Pictured: Displaced Palestinians reside at an UNRWA-run school in Khan Yunis
Air strikes have cost more than 2,750 lives and rendered half the population of Gaza refugees.
A further 1,000 remain missing, feared trapped beneath the rubble of ruined homes and offices.
Yesterday 600,000 displaced persons were reported to have reached the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis.
Around 400,000 are sheltering in facilities run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees.
UN officials warned of an unprecedented catastrophe with hospitals expected to run out of fuel within a day, endangering the lives of thousands of sick and wounded people.
The World Health Organisation has described Israel’s instruction to move patients, irrespective of their conditions, as ‘a death sentence’. Israel said Hamas uses vulnerable civilians as ‘human shields’.
In a bid to avert further bloodshed, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Israeli officials yesterday to discuss the crisis.
But before it will facilitate the distribution of aid Israel has demanded the release of its citizens captured when Hamas infiltrated the country just over a week ago.
Gunmen killed more than 1,400 men, women and children in the most barbaric circumstances.
In a bid to avert further bloodshed, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (pictured) met Israeli officials yesterday to discuss the crisis
Since the attack, Israel has pledged to destroy Hamas. But a former UK senior army officer warned that no Israeli incursion into Gaza would eliminate the Iranian-backed paramilitary organisation. Pictured: Military mobility of Israeli security forces continues in Sderot, Israel
The UK Foreign Office said it was working with the Egyptian authorities to arrange the safe passage of UK citizens. Pictured: A picture taken from the Israeli city of Sderot shows a salvo of rockets fired towards Israel from the Gaza Strip
Since then, Israel has pledged to destroy Hamas. But a former UK senior army officer warned that no Israeli incursion into Gaza would eliminate the Iranian-backed paramilitary organisation.
Major General Charlie Herbert, an Afghanistan veteran, suggested rescuing the 199 hostages by military means would also prove extremely difficult.
He said: ‘I can’t foresee a successful military solution to this objective. Diplomacy is better. The second objective is to capture or kill Hamas’s political and military leadership. This is a given, but, again, this won’t be easy in an operation of limited duration.’
Hopes were raised only to be dashed when a reported agreement to open the Rafah border crossing collapsed.
The move would have let thousands of dual nationals, including Britons, leave Gaza and for desperately needed humanitarian supplies to arrive from Egypt.
The UK Foreign Office said it was working with the Egyptian authorities to arrange the safe passage of UK citizens. However, the crossing remained closed yesterday.
This meant trucks loaded with 150,000 litres of fuel to run water and sewage pumping stations in Gaza remained stranded.
The charity Save The Children said that water was ‘running out’ in Gaza, with huge numbers of displaced civilians being rationed to one litre each per day.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced late Saturday that the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower strike group was on its way to the eastern Mediterranean to 'deter' any escalation
Israeli army Puma armoured personnel carrierss (APCs) move in a column near the Gaza border in southern Israel on October 14, 2023
The UN said it was ‘deep in negotiations’ with Israel and Hamas in a bid to reach an agreement over aid and to establish humanitarian corridors.
About 400,000 Israeli troops have continued their preparations for an assault on Palestinian territory.
Russia also called for an 'immediate ceasefire', with President Vladimir Putin calling for the violence to end while making no mention of his on-going invasion of Ukraine that has resulted in the deaths of thousands of civilians.
As the west prepares for Israel's ground assault, the Pentagon has reportedly selected about 2,000 troops to prepare for a deployment to help Israel as a second carrier strike group steams for the eastern Mediterranean.
Officials said the troops will not serve in a combat role but would be tasked with medical support or advisory duties.
Details emerged after the Department of Defense said the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower strike group, which deployed from Norfolk, Virginia, on Friday, is on its way.
She will join the USS Gerald R. Ford, which arrived off the coast of Israel last week.
The presence of two of the Navy's most powerful warships will send a clear signal to Iran and its regional proxies, such as Hezbollah, not to escalate the conflict.
ADDENDUM: The White House announced that President Biden will visit Israel on Wednesday. He will also meet with King Abdullah of Jordan and Palestinian Authority President Abbas.
EDITOR'S NOTE: What in the hell does Biden think he can accomplish in his visits to Israel and Jordan other than to give his reelection campaign a boost?
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