A Hamas leader was killed in a missile strike in Iran. Israel has not confirmed responsibility but Iran says that it holds Israel responsible and will strike back with ferocity.
Israel did take responsibility for a missile strike in Lebanon that killed a Hezbollah leader, Fuad Shukr. That strike hit a civilian area and civilian deaths have yet to be counted.
According to the BBC, “An Israeli official has confirmed to CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, that Israel gave the US notice of its Beirut strike.”
Why would the U.S. have authority to give Israel permission slips to bomb other countries?
These Hamas and Hezbollah leaders were undeniably anti-Zionist and wished harm on Israel. Their deaths abroad show that Israel is not very interested in a negotiated settlement with these groups. This zero-sum game puts the Middle East on the brink of a “wider war” as the Wall Street Journal calls it. Leaders in Qatar, Israel and Iran have all condemned the strikes but Israel still says that it is “conducting a situational assessment.”
