A former Israeli intelligence official has told CNN there is a “high possibility” that militia groups in Iraq will be used by Iran to carry out a potential retaliatory strike against Israel, following Israeli air strikes on Iranian military targets last week.
“This would be a way for Iran to retaliate without being held directly responsible, at least in their thinking,” said Miri Eisen, a former colonel in Israeli military intelligence and now a fellow at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism.
“Iraqi groups are physically near Iran, more accessible, and not degraded, unlike Hezbollah in Lebanon which is fighting for its existence,” Eisen told CNN.
According to a recent report by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, a US-based think tank, Israel has been facing a growing number of drone attacks from pro-Iranian militias in Iraq in recent months, although there is “very little evidence of effective strikes in Israel, due to interceptions,” the report said.
Earlier an Israeli military source confirmed the country was on a “high level of readiness” for a response from Iran. But the source told CNN the Israeli military is “still assessing the decision-making process in Iran” to determine if and when a retaliation will take place.
This comes after CNN reported Wednesday that Iran would carry out a “definitive and painful” response to Israel’s recent attack on October 25, citing a high-ranking source. The source on Wednesday did not provide an exact date for the expected attack but said it “will probably take place before the day of the US presidential election.”
