The US warns Iran that it will not be able to "stop" Israel if it attacks again

The US administration has warned Tehran in recent days that it will not be able to stop Israel if Iran carries out another attack against the US ally, the Axios platform reported, citing a US official and a former Israeli official with knowledge of the developments.

Following Iran's attack on Israel on October 1, in response to the assassination of several Iranian-linked figures in the Middle East, the Israelis have responded with attacks on Iranian military sites, although they have not hit nuclear or oil production sites. , as some have feared.

"We have told the Iranians, we will not be able to stop Israel, and we cannot guarantee that the next attack will be as calibrated as the previous one," said an American official on condition of anonymity, according to the Axios platform.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed on Saturday to retaliate against attacks by Israel and its ally, the United States, that have targeted Tehran and groups it supports in the region.

"The enemies, both the United States and the Zionist regime, know that they will face a severe response for what they are doing against Iran, the Iranian nation, and the resistance front," Khamenei said in a speech to students in Tehran.

He was referring to the alliance of armed groups backed by Iran, including Yemen's Houthi rebels, Lebanon's Hezbollah and the Palestinian group Hamas.

Hamas and Hezbollah have been declared terrorist groups by the United States, while the European Union has put Hamas, and only the military wing of Hezbollah, on the terrorist list.

Regional tensions have escalated since the outbreak of the war in Gaza in October of last year.

The war has been fueled by attacks by Hamas militants in southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking around 240 hostages.

As a result of the Israeli campaign in Gaza, more than 43,000 people, mostly women and children, have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Hezbollah, backed by Iran, has since begun attacking the border area with Israel as a sign of support for its Palestinian ally Hamas.

Since the offensive launched by Israel in Lebanon at the beginning of October, at least 2,890 people have been killed, according to the Lebanese authorities.

The United States has announced that it will position additional military assets in the Middle East, including ballistic missile destroyers and long-range fighter jets.

This announcement was seen as a warning to Iran./ REL