The Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, reportedly warned Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah to leave Lebanon days before the Israeli attack. Three Iranian sources indicated that Khamenei is also concerned about Israel infiltrating high-level government ranks in Tehran. A senior Iranian official speaking to Reuters revealed that after the Hezbollah attack on September 17, Khamenei sent an urgent message to Nasrallah to flee to Iran. The message contained information that Israel had agents within Hezbollah and was planning to assassinate Nasrallah. The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Major General Abbas Nilforoushan, who was sent as an envoy, was killed in an Israeli attack on September 27 while in a shelter with Nasrallah. Following these events, it was reported that Khamenei ordered an attack on Israel involving approximately 200 missiles on Tuesday. The Revolutionary Guards stated that this attack was in retaliation for the deaths of Nasrallah and Nilforoushan. On Tuesday, Israel launched a "limited" ground operation against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. These developments are seen as a continuation of the precise attacks Israel has carried out against Hezbollah over the past two weeks. Experts indicate that the events have weakened the alliance that Iran refers to as the "Axis of Resistance" and have made it difficult for Hezbollah to select a new leader. This situation also appears to have significantly reduced Iran's operational capacity towards the Israeli borders.
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