WORLD AT WAR: 11.9.24 - Iran to strike before US elections?

Iran to strike before US elections? Islamic Republic reportedly plans ‘definitive and painful’ response Iran is considering launching a retaliatory response to Israel’s strike before the U.S. elections next Tuesday, Nov. 5, CNN reported on Wednesday afternoon. The U.S. news site reported that a “high-ranking source” told them Israel’s recent strike on Iran will be met with a “definitive and painful” response. “The response of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the aggression of the Zionist regime will be definitive and painful,” the source told CNN. The source also claimed that Iran’s response “will probably take place before the day of the US presidential election.” Following the Israeli strikes last week, which hit primarily military targets, there was some hope that Iran would not choose to respond. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's comments on Sunday appeared to strike a balance that some analysts hoped would indicate it was not planning to retaliate. “It is up to the authorities to determine how to convey the power and will of the Iranian people to the Israeli regime and to take actions that serve the interests of this nation and country,” Khamenei said. Newly appointed Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also appeared to be pushing for restraint. “We do not seek war, but we will defend the rights of our nation and country.” Several Iranian military officials appeared to downplay the significance and damage caused by the Israeli strike. It appeared this was partially an attempt to minimize the demand for a response. On Monday, IRGC Commander Maj.-Gen. Hossein Salami claimed that Israel had “failed to achieve its sinister goals.” However, Salami also warned that Israel would face “the bitter consequences” of its actions. Remarks issued from this “high-ranking source” appear to signal a departure from Iran’s initial attempts to downplay the severity of the Israeli strikes. CNN has reached out to the Israeli military for comments. In his initial response to last weekend’s strikes, the Iranian regime's leader, Khamenei, opted to give a more measured response, saying the strikes should “neither be exaggerated nor downplayed.” Israeli defense and security officials claimed to have struck “strategic systems,” including key air defense systems and ballistic missile facilities. As Iranian rhetoric became more aggressive in recent days, Israeli leaders warned Iran not to retaliate. Visiting an Israeli Air Force base on Tuesday, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi warned that the IDF is ready for an Iranian response and will respond harshly in return. “If Iran makes the mistake and launches another barrage of missiles at Israel, we will once again know how to reach Iran, reach even with capabilities that we did not use this time, and hit very, very hard both the capabilities and places that we spared this time,” Halevi said. On Wednesday, opposition Knesset Member Avigdor Liberman said Israel should not wait for Iran but should engage in a “preemptive strike.” “We must not wait until the Iranians carry out their threats against the State of Israel,” Liberman wrote on 𝕏. “We must switch from waiting to a preemptive strike, from a proportional reaction to a clear defeat.” ------------------------------------ Replacement Hezbollah Chief Debuts with Violent Speech Vowing to Continue Jihad Naim Qassem, chosen the week to replace Hassan Nasrallah at the helm of the jihadist terror organization Hezbollah, delivered his first speech as leader of the group on Wednesday evening, promising to “remain on the path of war” against Israel and threatening to the genocidal removal of the Israeli people from their country. Qassem used his first address to honor both Nasrallah, who led the Iran-backed terrorists in Lebanon for decades, and Yahya Sinwar, the slain mass murderer who led Hamas this summer after former Hamas “political” leader Ismail Haniyeh died in an explosion in Tehran. He also insisted that Hezbollah was in fighting shape and prepared for a prolonged war against Israel despite its high-profile losses in the past four months, including both top leaders and a vast network of associated targeted in what was believed to be an Israeli attack weaponizing pagers, walkie-talkies, and other low-technology communications devices. Hezbollah also lost one of its main coordination centers to Israel Defense Forces (IDF) airstrikes in Lebanon, where Hassan Nasrallah is believed to have met his demise. “They wanted our secretary general’s killing to defeat our spirit of resistance and shatter our will to fight. But his blood continues to boil in our veins and strengthens our determination,” he vowed. “We fight on our land and liberate our occupied territory; no one asks us for anything, nor does anyone impose anything upon us.” Multiple media outlets outside of Iranian and pro-Hezbollah propaganda focused in their reports on the speech on the fact that Qassem appeared to contemplate the potential of a ceasefire with Israel. Qassem mentioned it as a possibility only in the event that Israel concedes all of Hezbollah’s demands, which appear to include the elimination of the Israeli state. ---------------------- North Korea intercontinental ballistic missile test records longest-ever flight time North Korea test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile that flew for its longest ever recorded flight time and with a theoretical range capable of striking the U.S. mainland, South Korea and Japan's militaries reported Thursday. It marked North Korea's first ICBM launch since December and comes as the reclusive nuclear-armed country may be seeking to grab U.S. attention ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential election. The launch also comes as the nation has ratcheted up its rhetoric against U.S. allies South Korea and Japan, and as NATO and the Pentagon estimate that North Korea has sent about 10,000 soldiers to train in eastern Russia for possible eventual deployment in Ukraine to support Russian President Vladimir Putin's war effort there. U.S., allies:We have evidence North Korean troops deployed to Ukraine The ICBM was in the air for 86 minutes, beating its previous record by 13 minutes. It was launched from near North Korea's capital Pyongyang and traveled for about 620 miles before crashing into the sea in waters off Japan. However, because the missile was fired at what Japan's defense ministry described as a "very high" angle, reaching an altitude of about 4,350 miles, this means it could in theory have flown much farther. Anchorage, Alaska is fewer than 3,700 miles from North Korea. Washington, D.C. is about 6,800 miles from Pyongyang. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Thursday's launch showed "our will to respond to our enemies," according to comments he made to his country's state media. Kim described the test as "appropriate military action." The White House's National Security Council Spokesman Sean Savett said in a statement that the test was a "flagrant violation" of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions. Savell said United States Indo-Pacific Command assessed the launch "did not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel, or territory, or to our allies." Tokuda Ryosuke, a journalist for Japan's state broadcaster NHK who specializes in North Korea, said there was "no doubt" that Pyongyang had the U.S. and its upcoming election "in mind" when it conducted its test. North Korea is estimated to have an arsenal of about 50 "stored" nuclear warheads, meaning they are not actively deployed on its various land-based weapons systems including its long-range missiles. Of the more than 12,000 global inventory of nuclear warheads, more than 10,500 belong to the U.S. and Russia, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The U.S. and Russia each have about 1,700 "deployed" nuclear warheads, meaning they are ready to be used with land-and-sea missile systems, as well as aircraft. -----------------------------