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Iran has expressed reservations about plans by Iraqi militias to support Hezbollah if war breaks out with Israel in Lebanon, according to “The Times of Israel”.

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Secret Meeting Leaks

According to the newspaper, four informed sources stated that a senior officer in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard met with militia leaders in Baghdad to discuss and consider the plans, but they have not yet been approved.

The sources mentioned that Iran is interested in proposals to support Hezbollah, which include redeploying Iraqi militias in Syria and transporting weapons by a single truck instead of a convoy to avoid Israeli strikes.

The newspaper also reported that the Iraqi militias were also ready to travel to Lebanon to support Hezbollah, but the Iranian officer believes their proposal is too enthusiastic at this time.

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On the other hand, Hezbollah has rejected the groups’ offer to participate in a potential war, and officials say the Iranian Revolutionary Guard “agreed to attend the meeting at the urgent request of Hezbollah in Lebanon; as it was necessary to monitor the reaction of the Iraqi factions, which do not always have the most accurate assessments.”

Two sources present at the meeting told the newspaper that it is up to Iran to decide whether the groups will join a potential war against Israel.

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American Pressure

In the same context, the American site “Al-Monitor” confirmed that the United States is pressuring Israel to avoid a major war against the Lebanese Hezbollah, as senior U.S. officials are urging a diplomatic solution to prevent another crisis in the Middle East.

The Israeli forces and Iran-backed Hezbollah exchange fire almost daily, and the Israeli military said last week that attack plans in Lebanon “have been approved and validated.”

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Washington is working to lower the temperature, but these efforts—topping the disagreements between the administrations of U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—could increase tensions between the two leaders.

Rafael Cohen, a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation, said, “There is growing concern among the Biden administration that the mutual violence along the Israeli-Lebanese border will escalate into a full-scale war.”

Cohen continued, “The stakes are high for two reasons. First, another war between Israel and Lebanon would be extremely destructive on both sides.”

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He added, “Second, a war between Israel and Hezbollah carries a greater risk of escalating into a broader regional war than what has occurred in the Gaza war so far, as Hezbollah is the crown jewel in Iran’s network of proxies, so the idea is that Iran would be more likely to engage in a war with Israel,” he said.

Violence across the border over the past eight months has killed at least 481 people in Lebanon, most of them fighters, but also including 94 civilians, according to a count by Agence France-Presse.