Iran has reportedly told its regional allies, including Hezbollah, to prepare for the possibility of a broader conflict amid military escalations with the United States, raising the prospect of Israel becoming directly involved in the fighting.

Leaders of the Iran-backed regional “Axis of Resistance” told allies that the current period of waiting is nearing an end and that preparations for military scenarios have become a priority, Lebanon’s Nidaa Al Watan newspaper reported on Friday, citing information obtained from meetings held in Tehran on the sidelines of the recent funeral of former Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed when the US and Israel launched the war with Iran at the end of February.

Friday’s report came as fighting between the US and Iran has renewed a month after the signing of a preliminary deal that aimed to end the conflict.

So far, Israel has not been involved in the latest escalation, and Tehran has not directly targeted the Jewish state. But that could change if Hezbollah, Iran’s Lebanese terror proxy, gets involved and resumes its attacks on Israeli territory.

Hezbollah was reportedly instructed to be fully prepared for any escalation, with Iranian officials warning that any future conflict could be broader and more severe than previous fighting.

Nidaa Al Watan also reported that Tehran still views Hezbollah as its most important regional asset following setbacks suffered by Iranian terror proxies in recent months. The terror group joined the wider regional conflict on March 2 by attacking Israel, and has objected to US-led diplomacy between Jerusalem and Beirut to solve the countries’ disputes.

In response to the Hezbollah attacks, Israel hit Hezbollah with heavy airstrikes and took control of a buffer zone in southern Lebanon, meant to distance Hezbollah from the border. Israel also decimated Hezbollah’s leadership in a previous round of fighting in 2024.

Another Iran-backed terror group, the Houthis in Yemen, has also previously attacked Israel.

US strikes Iranian infrastructure; Iran fires at region

The US has struck Iran for six consecutive nights and has expanded its airstrike campaign by increasingly hitting bridges, part of US President Donald Trump’s threats to start striking infrastructure to pressure Tehran to ease its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway for the global energy supply. Iran launched new missile attacks against US-allied nations in the Middle East and warned that its attacks would escalate.

Iranian state media reported Friday that overnight US strikes on........

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