Iran vows retaliation over Israel’s assassination of top Revolutionary Guard official
Smoke rises from Israeli airstrikes in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Iran has pledged to retaliate following Israel’s killing of Deputy Commander Abbas Nilforoushan in Friday’s Beirut airstrike, which also claimed the life of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the “horrible crime” by the “aggressor Zionist regime,” stating: “This horrible crime of the aggressor Zionist regime will not go unanswered.”
Araghchi assured Iran’s diplomatic apparatus would utilize all political, diplomatic, legal, and international capacities to pursue the perpetrators and their supporters.
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Nilforoushan, a high-ranking Quds Force commander, was killed in the Israeli airstrike. Iranian officials have strongly denounced Nasrallah’s assassination, given Hezbollah’s long-standing ties with Iran.
Ahmad Reza Pour Khaghan, deputy head of Iran’s judiciary, confirmed Nilforoushan’s death and asserted Iran’s right to retaliate under international law.
Iran’s Vice President for Strategic Affairs, Javad Zarif, warned: “A response will occur at the appropriate time and at Iran’s choice, and decisions will definitely be made at the leadership level, at the highest level of the state.”
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has offered condolences for Nasrallah’s “martyrdom,” declared five days of public mourning, and relocated to a secure location.
On his part, Ahmad Jannati, secretary of Iran’s Guardian Council, threatened that “Israel will receive a forceful answer…the destruction of the Zionist regime.”
