WASHINGTON, August 16. /TASS/. Iran continues to weigh options of retaliating against Israel for the assassination of Hamas Politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, CBS reported, citing multiple sources.

According to them, the Islamic Republic has been debating whether to launch a massive attack on Israel or whether to carry out "a covert intelligence operation," the US television channel said. In April, Iran fired hundreds of missiles and drones toward Israel in response to the attack on the Iranian embassy in Damascus that left two Revolutionary Guard Corps generals and another 11 people killed. The Israel Defense Forces then said that it had deflected the strike.

British, US and French troops stationed in the Middle East helped Israel in downing Iranian projectiles. British and French officials also told CBS that their militaries will be ready "to defend Israel, and we remain in constant touch with the US and allies on potential scenarios."

The United States believes that Iran will not seek to disrupt ongoing talks in Doha on ending the conflict in the Gaza Strip where Israel has been conducting its operation against Hamas since October 2023, the TV channel said. According to CBS, the negotiations in Qatar may stretch into the weekend, and it is not clear how long Iran and its allies in the region may put off a retaliatory attack on the Jewish state.

Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah, who pledged retaliation against Israel for the assassination of Hezbollah’s chief military strategist Fuad Shukr in Beirut, does not seek to launch a large-scale attack on the Jewish state without Iran’s consent, the sources told CBS News. While Nasrallah does not seek a wider conflict with Israel either, he could launch an attack with no warning, without limiting itself to military targets on Israeli soil this time around, the television said.