Tehran could activate Hezbollah forces to attack Israel along the northern
border in an effort to stave off domestic pressures within Iran, according to
assessments in the IDF’s Northern Command.
The concern within the army is
that if the regime in Tehran feels under pressure due to anti-government
demonstrations it will try to initiate an attack on an Israeli target – either
overseas or near the border – to divert attention from its own
troubles.
RELATED:Iran briefly detains daughter of ex-president RafsanjaniPM dismisses threat by Nasrallah to capture GalileeDemonstrations picked up speed in Iran on Sunday with reports
that at least two people were killed and that Hezbollah operatives were
assisting Iranian security forces in suppressing the protests.
“There has
always been one common enemy for the Islamic world, and that is Israel,” a
senior defense official said. “Israel will then need to consider how to respond
to the attack, and depending on its response, if the conflict develops the world
will be focused on Israel and not on what is happening on the streets of
Tehran.”
Last week, Israeli embassies were placed on heightened alert and
four were closed following concrete warnings of possible terrorist attacks timed
to mark the third anniversary of Hezbollah military commander Imad Mughniyeh’s
assassination.
The Foreign Ministry said that a number of “irregular
incidents” had been noticed recently around a number of diplomatic missions
abroad. In 2008, a bomb plot was uncovered against the embassy in Baku,
Azerbaijan.