Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei orders direct attack on Israel

TEHRAN: Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has ordered a direct attack on Israel in retaliation for the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. According to reports, Khamenei gave the order at an emergency meeting of Iran's Supreme National Security Council on Wednesday morning, shortly after Iran announced that Haniyeh had been killed.

In his public statement about Haniyeh's death, Khamenei signalled that Iran would retaliate directly, saying, "We see avenging his blood our duty," because it happened on the territory of the Islamic Republic. He said Israel had set the stage for receiving "a severe punishment," the New York Times reported.

Iranian officials said it was unclear at this time how strongly Iran would respond to Haniyeh's killing. Iranian military commanders are reportedly considering a combined attack involving drones and missiles on military bases near Tel Aviv and Haifa. However, the safety of the public will be considered.

"Now it is unclear how forcefully Iran will respond, and whether it will once again calibrate its attack to steer clear of escalation. Iranian military commanders are considering another combination attack of drones and missiles on military targets in the vicinity of Tel Aviv and Haifa, but would make a point of avoiding strikes on civilian targets," the Iranian officials said.

Another option under consideration is a coordinated attack from Iran and other fronts where it has allied forces, including Yemen, Syria and Iraq, for maximum effect, they added.

Haniyeh was killed in a missile attack in Tehran, the capital of Iran. He was in Tehran to attend the inauguration of Iran's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian. Haniyeh was assassinated at about 2 am (local time), after attending the ceremony and meeting with Khamenei. The killing shocked Iranian officials, who described it as crossing red lines.