UPDATE – Israel gives 24-hour ultimatum to ‘representatives of Iranian regime’ to leave Lebanon

UPDATES WITH DETAILS

By Mohammad Sio

ISTANBUL (AA) – The Israeli army on Tuesday gave a 24-hour ultimatum to what it described as “representatives of the Iranian regime” in Lebanon to leave the country or face attacks.

The Israeli military “warns representatives of the Iranian terrorist regime who are still in Lebanon to leave immediately before being targeted,” army spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote on US social media company X.

He warned that the army “will not tolerate presence of representatives of the Iranian terrorist regime in Lebanon,” giving them 24 hours to leave the country.

“After that, there will be no safe place for representatives of the Iranian regime in Lebanon, and the IDF (army) will target them wherever they are,” Adraee threatened.

The Israeli spokesman earlier claimed that the army had killed Dawood Ali Zadeh in Tehran, describing him as “the most senior Iranian commander in the Quds Force responsible for Iranian activities in Lebanon.”

He alleged that Zadeh had instructed Hezbollah to attack Israel in defense of Iran rather than Lebanon.

On Monday, Hezbollah said it targeted a military site in northern Israel in response to ongoing Israeli attacks on Lebanon and the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei as part of ongoing US-Israeli strikes on Tehran since Saturday.

In response, the Israeli army launched a series of airstrikes across Lebanon, killing at least 40 people and injuring nearly 250 others.

Tension escalated across the region when the US and Israel launched large-scale attacks on Iran on Saturday, killing nearly 800 people.

Tehran has responded with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel as well as Gulf countries, which are home to US assets.