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<div class="gmail-inner-article-top"><h1 class="gmail-">Israel plans 'unprecedented strikes' in Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq as part of US\u2013Iran war: Report</h1><p class="gmail-">Axis of Resistance members have vowed to fight Israel if it attacks Iran</p><div class="gmail-another-name"><p><a href="https://thecradle.co/authors/news-desk-9" style="color:rgb(164,4,4)">News Desk</a></p></div><div class="gmail-another-name" style="margin-top:16px"><p><span style="color:rgb(84,88,94)">FEB 20, 2026 - </span><font size="1"><a href="https://thecradle.co/articles/israel-plans-unprecedented-strikes-in-lebanon-yemen-iraq-as-part-of-us-iran-war-report">https://thecradle.co/articles/israel-plans-unprecedented-strikes-in-lebanon-yemen-iraq-as-part-of-us-iran-war-report</a></font></p></div></div><div class="gmail-inner-article-img"><img src="https://thecradle-main.oss-eu-central-1.aliyuncs.com/public/articles/d3c63106-0e73-11f1-9971-00163e02c055.webp" alt="" width="408" height="230" style="margin-right: 0px;"><span>(Photo credit: Hossein Beris/Middle East Images\u2014AFP/Getty Images)</span></div><div class="gmail-inner-article-content"><div class="gmail-row"><div class="gmail-col-md-8 gmail-col-sm-7"><div class="gmail-article-content"><span class="gmail-article-body"><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
Israeli army is preparing to carry out \u201cmassive and unprecedented\u201d
strikes against Iran-backed resistance movements in the region should
they support the Islamic Republic in any war against Israel, <i>Al-Sharq al-Awsat</i> </span><a href="https://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5242822-israel-keen-attack-iran%E2%80%99s-regional-proxies-they-can-join-war"><span style="background-color:transparent">reported</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent"> on 20 February.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Citing
Israeli military sources, the Saudi-owned paper said Israel was
preparing for possible strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon, Ansarallah
in Yemen, and resistance factions in Iraq.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Israel
is currently pressuring US President Donald Trump to initiate a new war
against Iran. In January, Trump ordered an \u201carmada\u201d of US naval forces
to West Asia in preparation for a possible attack.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Israeli
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday his military is
making its own preparations for possible missile strikes on Iran,
alongside any US action.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">\u201cWe
are prepared for any scenario,\u201d he said, adding that if Iran attacks
Israel, \u201cthey will experience a response they cannot even imagine.\u201d</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">A
military source said Ansarallah poses a \u201cdirect threat not just to
Israel, but to the whole world,\u201d accusing the Yemeni movement of
impeding international trade in the Red Sea.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
Ansarallah-led Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) targeted Israeli-linked ships
in the Red Sea starting in 2023 in response to Israel's genocide of
Palestinians in Gaza.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Ansarallah also fired ballistic missiles and drones toward targets in Israel, largely shutting the Eilat port.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
source said Ansarallah, which governs most of the populated areas of
Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, is producing weapons and possesses
advanced technology. He compared them to a \u201cdangerous ticking time bomb
that must be swiftly neutralized.\u201d</span></p><p><a href="https://www.ynetnews.com/article/rjapkc7dbg"><span style="background-color:transparent">According</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent">
to Israeli media, Tel Aviv has delivered very clear warnings to the
Lebanese resistance movement, Hezbollah, that if it chooses to intervene
in a war between Iran and Israel, the blow will be \u201cextremely painful.\u201d</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem </span><a href="https://thearabweekly.com/hezbollah-threatens-act-if-iran-attacked-or-khamenei-targeted"><span style="background-color:transparent">stated</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent">
on Monday that any attack on Iran would also be an attack on the
movement. Speaking in a televised address to supporters, Qassem said
Hezbollah and Iran were facing an \u201caggression that does not distinguish
between us.\u201d</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">\u201cA war on Iran this time will ignite the region,\u201d he warned.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">\u201cWe will choose at that time how to act \u2026 but we are not neutral,\u201d he added.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Mohammed Bukhaiti of Yemen's Ansarallah </span><a href="https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/523700/Yemen-s-Ansarullah-warns-US-against-any-raid-on-Iran"><span style="background-color:transparent">stated</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent"> his movement would also join a war to defend Iran.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">\u201cWe are men of action, not words,\u201d he said.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">In
a strongly worded statement issued recently, the movement called on
those willing to confront the \u201cfront of disbelief and hypocrisy\u201d to
prepare for a \u201ccomprehensive war\u201d in support of Iran.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Kataib Hezbollah, an Iraqi resistance movement, </span><a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/26/iraqs-kataib-hezbollah-warns-of-total-war-if-iran-is-attacked"><span style="background-color:transparent">warned</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent"> of a \u201ctotal war\u201d if \ufeffIran is attacked by the US and Israel.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The movement's chief, Abu Hussein al\u2011Hamidawi, issued a statement late on Sunday, calling on fighters to be prepared for war.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">He
said the \u201cforces of darkness\u201d are gathering to subjugate and destroy
Iran, describing the country as the \u201cfortress and pride\u201d of Muslims.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">\u201cYou will taste the bitterest forms of death, and nothing will remain of you in our region,\u201d Hamidawi warned Israel.</span></p></span></div></div></div></div>
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