This move comes amid growing expectations in Israel of potential retaliatory attacks from Iran and the Lebanese group Hezbollah.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly instructed his government ministers to refrain from public statements about security issues.

The Anadolu news agency reported that Netanyahu “warned his ministers against discussing security matters in the coming days,” emphasizing the “critical nature” of the situation, citing the Israeli Broadcasting Authority, KAN.

This move comes amid growing expectations in Israel of potential retaliatory attacks from Iran and the Lebanese group Hezbollah in response to the assassinations of senior figures, including political leader of the Palestinian Hamas group Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah commander Fouad Shukr in Beirut.

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The broadcaster said that Israel is preparing for a broader Iranian attack, potentially more extensive than the drone assault in April, which saw Israel targeted by dozens of missiles and drones.

“New assessments within Israel suggest that Iran remains determined to launch this attack despite recent indications that it might have backed down due to political pressures,” KAN added.

The current assessments suggest that Iran has planned a large-scale attack on critical strategic points within Israel, it said.

The report noted: “The exact timing of this Iranian attack remains unknown, but given the ongoing exchanges of threats between Iran and Israel, the coming days are expected to be highly tense.”

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Staggering Death Toll

Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.

Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.

According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 39,897 Palestinians have been killed, and 92,152 wounded. Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.

Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.

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Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.

The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.

The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.

Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.

(Anadolu, PC)