FEARS are mounting Iran-backed militias will unite and invade Israel after a sinister message appeared on the Lebanese-Israeli border.
A chilling mural of terrorist groups including Hamas and Hezbollah was painted on the barrier’s Lebanese side.
Ian WhittakerA conflict is brewing on Israel’s northern border with Lebanon[/caption]
IRGC commander Qassem Soleimani is pictured in a chilling mural on the barrier along with Iran-backed terrorist organisationsTwitter/@Israel_Alma_org
Soleimani’s replacement Esmail Qaani is reportedly leading the effort for terrorist groups to invade IsraelGetty
Above a large portrait of former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Qasem Soleimani, who was assassinated by the US in 2020, are the flags of Gaza, Lebanon, Iraq, and Syria’s Iran-backed militant groups.
Represented in the mural are Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, Abu Alil Mustapha Brigades, Popular Mobilisation Forces, the Revolutionary Guards, Harakat Hezbollah Al-Nujaba, Liwa Zainebiyoun, and Liwa Fatemiyoun.
Israel-based research centre Alma wrote of the painting on X/Twitter: “The message is clear, the proxies of Iran intend to amass on Israel’s northern border.
“It is a stated goal of current IRGC commander Esmail Qaani to achieve a unification of fronts against Israel through the use of these proxies as cannon fodder.”
Hezbollah has already vowed to join the war in support of Hamas “when the time comes”, which would see Lebanon bombed “back to the Stone Age”, a former government adviser told The Sun.
Foreign powers have urged Hezbollah, which Israel considers an even bigger threat than Hamas due to it being heavily armed with weapons supplied by Iran, to stay put on the sidelines.
The forbidding image appeared on the Israel-Lebanon security barrier as US President Biden launched a retaliation attack on Iran-backed militia and struck two weapons and ammunition depots connected to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.
Senior US military officials said the “precision” air strikes were carried out near Boukamal in eastern Syria by two F-16 fighter jets following a spate of drone and missile assaults on American troops.
They were intended to show Iran that Washington would retaliate as strongly as possible to deter future aggression, officials claimed.
Qaani was appointed commander of the Quds Force – an elite unit that manages Iran’s overseas operations – after Soleimani’s death.
He previously warned former US President Donald Trump against conflict with Iran: “We are not a war-mongering country. But any military action against Iran will be regretted.
“Trump’s threats against Iran will damage America… We have buried many… like Trump and know how to fight against America.”
There are fears the Israel-Hamas conflict could spiral into an all-out war across the Middle East.
On Thursday, a US base at Kharab al-Jir in Syria was attacked for the second time in two days, while a base in western Iraq was also hit.
There have been at least 19 assaults on US bases and personnel in Iraq and Syria using drones and missiles since October 17, according to the Pentagon.
Some 24 US soldiers have been injured and one personnel killed.
Last week, the Israeli military ordered residents of 28 villages close to the border to evacuate as the threat of an escalation in the war intensified.
Hezbollah terrorists in the north blasted rockets and missiles before Israel retaliated with airstrikes and shelling.
Tensions in the Middle East have soared since Hamas terrorists first unleashed on southern Israel on October 7.
AFPFormer IRGC commander Qasem Soleimani was assassinated by the US in 2020[/caption]
AFPAn Israeli army howitzer deployed along the border with the Gaza Strip near Sderot in southern Israel[/caption]