Hezbollah warns of 'new phase' in hostilities with Israel after assassinations

The leader of Hezbollah has said that the Lebanese group's conflict with Israel has entered "a new phrase" after the back-to-back assassinations of a senior commander and Hamas's political chief, which risk plunging the Middle East into a regional war.

- Bethan McKernan

In a televised address broadcast to about 1,000 mourners at the funeral in Beirut of Fuad Shukr, Hezbollah's second-in-command, Hassan Nasrallah vowed that the powerful Shia militia would seek revenge.

"The enemy, and those who are behind the enemy, must await our inevitable response... You do not know what red lines you crossed," he said, in reference to Israel and its most important ally, the US.

Similar warnings of retaliation were made earlier in the day in Tehran, at a funeral procession for Hamas's political chief, Ismail Haniyeh. The 62-year-old was killed in the early hours of Wednesday - just hours after the missile attack on Shukr in Beirut - during a visit for the inauguration of Iran's new president.

The Qatar-based official's death is likely to further affect progress in talks about a ceasefire and hostage release deal in the war in Gaza, which are already faltering.

Details of what happened to Haniyeh are still unclear, but the New York Times reported yesterday that an explosive device was planted in the building weeks in advance. The publication, citing Iranian officials, also said that Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, had since issued an order to attack Israel.

Israel has claimed responsibility for the attack on Shukr, which also killed an Iranian military adviser and at least five civilians: it says he was to blame for a rocket attack on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights last weekend that killed 12 children and young people playing football.