Iran hits back after claims it green-lit deadly Hamas attacks on Israel

The surprise attack on Israel launched by Hamas terrorists on the weekend had been planned with the help of Iranian security officials, it has been claimed.

Senior members of Hamas and Hezbollah, the military arms of which are proscribed terrorist organisations in the UK, have alleged that officers at Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) green-lighted last Monday the attack that shook Israel to the core just a few days later.

These sources, reported by The Wall Street Journal, claimed members of the Corps worked with Hamas invaders to plan air, land and sea incursions since August.

The operation’s details were refined during several meetings in Beirut attended by IRGC officers, Hamas representatives as well as Hezbollah members, according to reports.

The US newspaper claimed a European official and an adviser to the Syrian government gave accounts similar to those of Hamas and Hezbollah’s members regarding Iran’s role in the attacks.

However, officials in Washington have called for caution over allegations of Iranian involvement in Hamas’ attacks, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken telling the CNN on Sunday: “We have not yet seen evidence that Iran directed or was behind this particular attack, but there is certainly a long relationship.”

A US official also said of these reported meetings: “We don’t have any information at this time to corroborate this account.”

And Iran’s president, Ebrahim Raisi, denied his country had anything to do with Hamas’ actions and lashed out at Israel, accusing the war-torn nation of being responsible for the instability in the Middle East.

Mr Raisi said: “The Zionist regime and its supporters are responsible for endangering the security of nations in the region, and they must be held accountable in this matter.”

Muslim governments, he continued, should “support the Palestinian nation”.

Similarly, a spokesman for Iran’s mission to the United Nations claimed the “decisions made by the Palestinian resistance are fiercely autonomous”.

Hamas launched a surprise air and ground attack in areas bordering Gaza in the early hours of Saturday, which resulted in hundreds of deaths and the kidnapping of many Israelis. Missiles were also launched from Gaza to Israel’s capital city Tel Aviv.

Israel responded with air strikes on Gaza hours before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu formally announced to his citizens the country was “at war”.

More than 700 Israelis have died so far as a result of Hamas’ assaults. Following Tel Aviv’s response, more than 400 Palestinians have died in air strikes targeting Gaza.