Iran war live: IRGC warns US against attacks on ships; Israel bombs Lebanon

Iran Israel war news: IRGC warns US ships face retaliation after strikes on Yemen

Muhammad Asghar | GlobalBeat

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards issued a direct warning to the United States on Monday that American naval vessels would face retaliation if Washington continues attacking Houthi targets in Yemen.

The IRGC statement came hours after Israeli warplanes struck multiple sites across southern Lebanon overnight, marking the most extensive cross-border bombardment since October. Israel’s military confirmed hitting 40 Hezbollah positions in response to earlier rocket fire that wounded 14 Israelis near Kiryat Shmona.

The twin escalations push the region closer to a wider conflict. Iran backs both the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon, while the United States supports Israel militarily and leads the naval coalition protecting Red Sea shipping lanes. The IRGC threat represents Tehran’s first explicit warning against US naval assets since American and British strikes on Yemen began in January.

The Guards’ naval commander Alireza Tangsiri delivered the warning through Iranian state media. “The enemies should expect reciprocal actions from the Axis of Resistance in the Red Sea and wherever they are present,” Tangsiri said, using Iran’s term for its regional militant allies. He specifically threatened US aircraft carriers operating in waters near Yemen.

US Central Command reported its forces conducted self-defense strikes against 7 Houthi missiles that were prepared to launch against Red Sea shipping vessels on Sunday. American warplanes have targeted Yemen over 40 times since joint US-UK operations began, according to Pentagon figures released last week.

Israel’s overnight bombardment of Lebanon followed a deadly exchange that started when Hezbollah fired 35 rockets into northern Israel Sunday afternoon. The salvo struck a chicken farm and industrial area near the border town of Kiryat Shmona, hospitalizing 5 people with shrapnel wounds and treating another 9 for shock. One rocket pierced the roof of a plastics factory, igniting a fire that took firefighters 2 hours to contain.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant convened security chiefs in Tel Aviv before authorizing what the military termed “widespread strikes” against Hezbollah infrastructure. Warplanes hit weapons depots, command centers and rocket launching positions from Naqoura on the coast through the Bekaa Valley, the Israeli military said. Lebanese state media reported explosions near the southern cities of Tyre and Nabatieh.

Hezbollah acknowledged 3 of its fighters died in the Israeli raids, bringing the group’s death toll since October to 248 according to Lebanese security sources. The Iranian-backed movement claimed it fired additional rockets at Israeli military positions Monday morning, though Israeli authorities reported no fresh casualties.

Background

Iran has spent four decades building a network of allied militias across the Middle East that function as proxies extending Tehran’s military reach. The strategy began after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, when Iran’s new clerical leadership sought to export its ideology and counter enemies like Israel and Sunni Arab states.

Hezbollah emerged as Iran’s earliest and most successful proxy project. The Lebanese Shia movement formed during Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon, with Iranian Revolutionary Guards training its initial cadres. Today Hezbollah possesses an estimated 150,000 rockets and missiles, making it the most heavily armed non-state actor in the world. The group fought Israel to a stalemate in 2006 and has since established a dominant political role inside Lebanon.

The Houthis represent Iran’s most distant proxy relationship. Yemen’s Zaydi Shia movement transformed from a local insurgency into a regional power after seizing Sanaa in 2014. While the extent of direct Iranian control remains debated, the Houthis have received Iranian weapons technology including drones and missiles now being fired at Red Sea shipping. The group’s slogan declares “Death to America, Death to Israel, Curse the Jews” in both Arabic and Persian.

What’s Next

The IRGC warning sets up a potential direct confrontation between Iranian and American forces at sea. US officials previously said they took “appropriate measures” to avoid hitting Iranian targets during Yemen strikes. Tehran’s explicit threat against US carriers removes that buffer, meaning any future Houthi attacks could trigger Iranian retaliation against American naval assets.

The region braced for further escalation Monday as Hezbollah funeral processions for the 3 dead fighters began in southern Lebanon. The group’s secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah is scheduled to deliver a televised address Tuesday evening, his first major speech since Israeli strikes killed a senior Hezbollah commander in January. Previous Nasrallah speeches have preceded major escalations.