Iran, allies plan joint but limited retaliation against Israel

Iran and armed groups backed by it are preparing coordinated action meant to deter Israel but avert all-out war, sources and analysts said, after the killings of top Hamas and Hezbollah figures.

On Wednesday, Iranian officials met in Tehran with representatives of the so-called "Axis of Resistance" -- a loose alliance of Tehran-backed groups hostile to Israel -- to discuss retaliation for the deaths of Hamas's leader and Hezbollah's top military commander, said a source close to Lebanese group.

"Two scenarios were discussed: a simultaneous response from Iran and its allies or a staggered response from each party," the source who had been briefed on the meeting told AFP, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei threatened a "harsh punishment" for the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, which the group blamed on Israel, also vowing revenge.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned Thursday his group was bound to respond to Israel's killing of top military commander Fuad Shukr, saying in a speech broadcast at the funeral that his death and that of Haniyeh "crossed" red lines.

Israel said it "eliminated" Shukr Tuesday in a strike on southern Beirut, describing him as Nasrallah's "right-hand man". He led operations in south Lebanon, where the group has exchanged near-daily fire with Israel since the Gaza war erupted.

"There is a very strong likelihood that the response will be coordinated... among other resistance actors," said Amal Saad, a Hezbollah researcher and lecturer at Britain's Cardiff University.