Iran has pinned the blame for the attack on Israel, and Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri said Saturday that it "won’t remain unanswered” by Iran, according to Iran's semi-official news outlet Tasnim.

 who is the country's highest ranking military commander, said it will be up to Iran to decide how and when to respond to attack, according to the Tasnim report. 

He also issued a warning to the US, saying the "main responsibility" for the Damascus attack lies with the US, according to Tasnim.

Bagheri's remarks on Saturday were heard by a huge crowd gathered in the western city of Isfahan for Zahedi's funeral procession.

Video from news agencies and state media shows mourners thronging the streets to catch a glimpse of the officer's coffin, which travelled in a highly-decorated open cortege. 

Many mourners could be seen waving Iranian and Palestinian flags.

Some context: Israel has intensified its military campaign against both Iran and its proxy groups in the region since the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, which is backed by Tehran, and the subsequent war in Gaza.

The US is on high alert and actively preparing for a “significant” attack that could come as soon as within the next week by Iran targeting Israeli or American assets in retaliation for the Damascus strike, a senior administration official told CNN on Friday.

Speaking from a funeral procession Saturday for a slain military officer, Iran's highest-ranking commander vowed that an Israeli strike on its embassy complex in Damascus will not go unanswered.

The remarks come as the US braces for a significant Iranian attack on US or Israeli assets in the Middle East, according to a senior administration official.

The situation once again underlines fears that the war in Gaza could spread into a broader regional conflict.

The strike killed at least seven Iranian officials in Syria on Monday: Among them were Mohammed Reza Zahedi, a top commander in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, whose funeral was held today.

The airstrike destroyed the Iranian consulate building in the Syrian capital of Damascus and also killed at least six Syrian citizens, according to Iranian state TV.

An Israel Defense Forces spokesperson told CNN this week that intelligence showed the building was not a consulate but “a military building of Quds forces disguised as a civilian building.”

The attack dealt a significant blow to Iran's military: Zahedi — a former commander of the IRGC’s ground forces and air force, and the deputy commander of its operations — is the most high-profile Iranian target killed since the US assassination of IRGC Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020.

At least one other senior commander was among those killed, according to Iran's foreign ministry.

Tehran has vowed to respond: Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri (Above), the chief of staff of Iran's military, said Saturday that the Damascus strike "Won’t remain unanswered,” according to Iran's semi-official news outlet Tasnim.

His remarks follow similar vows by Iran's supreme leader and its president.

The US says it was uninvolved: The US was quick to tell Iran that the Biden administration was not involved and had no advance knowledge of Monday’s strike on the embassy.

It has warned Iran against coming after American assets. Nonetheless, Bagheri said Saturday that Washington bears the "Main responsibility" for the Damascus attack.

He has previously said the US supply of weapons to Israel makes it complicit in its ally's attacks.

Washington is bracing for retaliation: The US is on high alert and actively preparing for a “significant” attack by Iran that could come as soon as the coming week, targeting Israeli or American assets in the region, a senior administration official tells CNN. Senior US officials believe an attack by Iran is “inevitable,” the source said.

How this ties back to the war in Gaza:

Israel's ongoing conflicts with Iran and its proxy groups — like the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon — have intensified since the October 7 attacks by Hamas, which is also backed by Tehran.

Israel has carried out numerous strikes on Iran-backed targets in Syria, but the targeting of the embassy itself marks a significant escalation.

Iran's response could further escalate the already tumultuous situation in the Middle East.

Source | Wires