Iranian links to Israel carnage spark fears of wider conflict

There is growing evidence of Iranian involvement in the terrorist invasion of Israel, as 100,000 Israeli troops prepare for an expected ground assault on Gaza.

An Israeli soldier directs a self-propelled howitzer near the southern city of Ashkelon on Sunday. Picture: AFP

Growing evidence of Iranian ­involvement in the brutal terrorist invasion of Israel has sparked fears of a wider Middle Eastern conflict, as 100,000 Israeli troops mass in the country’s south for an expected ground attack on Gaza.

Israeli air strikes and artillery pounded more than 500 terrorist sites in the Palestinian enclave on Monday in preparation for the ­retaliatory assault, as the shocked nation mourned more than 700 of its citizens slaughtered in the most devastating attack on the country in 50 years.

As Israel reeled on Monday, an Australian woman was reported to have been among more than 100 hostages captured in the Hamas assault.

Foreign Affairs officials said they were “seeking to confirm the welfare of Australians who may have been caught in the attack”, following the Seven News report of the missing woman.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Iranian security officials helped plan Saturday’s attack by the Hamas terrorist group, giving it the go-ahead at a meeting in ­Beirut on Monday last week.

Officers of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had worked with Hamas since August to devise the assault on Israel, the Journal reported, citing senior Hamas sources, members of the Hezbollah militant group, and an Iranian official.

If Iran’s involvement is proven, it could prompt Israeli retaliation against one of the most heavily armed states in the region, opening the way for further escalation.

Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said on Monday night he had ordered a “complete siege” of the Gaza Strip.

“There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel, everything is closed,” Mr Gallant said. “We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly.”

Israeli tanks are transported on a road near Sderot, in the country’s south, after the deadliest attack on its territory in half a century. Picture: AFP

As the US moved a carrier strike group into the eastern Mediterranean Sea and vowed to provide military equipment for its longtime ally, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Israelis to brace themselves for a protracted conflict.

“I have ordered a complete siege on the Gaza Strip. There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel, everything is closed,” Gallant says following an assessment at the IDF Southern Command in Beersheba.

“We are embarking on a long and difficult war that was forced on us by a murderous Hamas ­attack,” Mr Netanyahu said.

He said Israel’s military had begun the offensive phase, “which will continue with neither limitations nor respite until the objectives are achieved”.

The coming ground assault is expected to result in huge casualties on both sides, and will be complicated by Hamas taking a large numbers of hostages, who are likely to be used as human shields in densely populated Gaza.

Fire and smoke rise after an Israeli air strike targeted the National Bank in Gaza, after Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a massive surprise assault on Israel. Picture: AFP

Iranian-backed Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon held their fire on Monday after a rocket and ­artillery salvo on Sunday, but ­Israel remained on high alert at its northern border, where the terrorist group has more than 100,000 precision-guided missiles pointed at the Jewish state.

On the third day of fighting, ­Israeli soldiers continued to search for terrorist militants in the country’s south, and began to evacuate communities near Gaza.

Israel’s ambassador to Australia Amir Maimon, who was holidaying in his home country, revealed a member of his family had died in the “ruthless and deadly terrorist onslaught”.

“These are terrible, dark days for my country,” Mr Maimon said.

“Now we have the grim task of ­finishing a fight we did not seek, and did not start.

“We will spare no effort in defending our homeland.”

Hamas fighters paragliding into Israel Festival Picture: TikTok

Traumatised Israelis begged for loved ones to be released. Yoni Asher, whose wife and two young daughters were snatched near the Gaza border, said: “Don't hurt them. Don’t hurt little children. Don’t hurt women. If you want me instead I’m willing to come.”

Hamas said it had taken more than 100 Israeli hostages including high-ranking army officers.

The Israel Defence Forces said on Monday that 700 of the country’s citizens had been killed since Saturday with another 1200 wounded – many critically. Palestinian officials reported at least 413 deaths in Gaza. The carnage wrought by the terrorists was laid bare at the site of a dance party near the Gaza border, where at least 260 bodies were found.

Wrecked cars at the festival site where rescuers found 260 bodies.

The Wall Street Journal said its sources revealed the Hamas operation was planned during meetings in Beirut attended by officers from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and representatives of four Iran-backed militant groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah.

Israel has already blamed Iran, saying the country was behind the attacks, if only indirectly.

“We know that there were meetings in Syria and in Lebanon with other leaders of the terror armies that surround Israel so obviously it’s easy to understand that they tried to co-ordinate,” said Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan.

A spokesman for Iran’s mission to the UN said the Islamic Republic backed Hamas’ actions but did not direct them.

“The decisions made by the Palestinian resistance are fiercely autonomous and unwaveringly aligned with the legitimate interests of the Palestinian people,” the spokesman said. “We are not involved in Palestine’s response, as it is taken solely by Palestine itself.”

Israeli security forces take cover during a rocket attack near the southern city of Sderot. Picture: AFP

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there was no confirmation yet of direct Iranian involvement, “but there is certainly a long relationship” between Iran and the terrorist group.

Dave Sharma, a former Australian ambassador to Israel and Liberal MP, said if Iran’s involvement was proven, “there is no way that Israel will not seek to extract a price on Iran”.

“Now, what that looks like, and how that's done, will all be determined operationally,” Mr Sharma said. “But this isn’t going to be a nuclear scientist shot from the back of a motorcycle. Israel would have to make a pretty significant response in order to maintain its deterrence in order to maintain its deterrence.”

Mr Sharma said that would risk a “much bigger regional conflict”.

Israel Defence Forces spokesman Jonathan Conricus said 100,000 reserve troops had been deployed to the country’s south, as he vowed to strip Hamas of military capabilities. Lieutenant Colonel Conricus said about 1000 Palestinian militants had participated in Hamas’ assault on Saturday, which he called “by far the worst day in Israeli history”.

Reuters, citing a source close to Hamas, reported the militants trained in Gaza, often in plain sight, conducting drills at a mock-Israeli settlement constructed in the Palestinian enclave.