Israel's assassination of Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri in a drone strike in Lebanon's capital Beirut on Tuesday has raised fears that the war in Gaza could spread beyond the Palestinian enclave and engulf the Middle East.
Arouri, 57, was the first senior Hamas political leader to be assassinated since Israel launched a brutal air and ground offensive against the group almost three months ago on the heels of the ruthless October 7 attacks on Israeli towns.
Lebanon's heavily armed Hezbollah group, a powerful Hamas ally, previously vowed to strike back against any Israeli targeting of Palestinian officials in Lebanon, and said of the attack: 'This crime will never pass without response and punishment.'
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati also condemned the killing, declaring Israel 'aims to draw Lebanon' further into the war.
Hezbollah and the Israeli military have been exchanging fire almost daily over the Israeli-Lebanese border since Israel's military campaign in Gaza began, but so far the Lebanese group has appeared reluctant to dramatically escalate the fighting.
A significant response now could send the conflict spiralling into all-out war on Israel's northern border.
Meanwhile, Nasser Kanaani, spokesperson for the foreign ministry of Iran - the chief backer of Hamas and Hezbollah - said Arouri's killing would 'undoubtedly ignite another surge in the veins of resistance and the motivation to fight against the Zionist occupiers.
'Not only in Palestine but also in the region and among all freedom-seekers worldwide.'
Arouri, a co-founder of Hamas' military wing who lived in exile in Beirut in an evidently futile attempt to avoid Israel's wrath, is accused by Tel-Aviv of masterminding numerous attacks in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
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