Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah has praised the attacker who killed five Israelis in a suburb of Tel Aviv in the third deadly attack of its kind in a week.
Describing the assailant who was shot dead as a “martyr”, Hezbollah issued a statement on Wednesday to reiterate its support for the attack on Tuesday in Bnei Brak (Video), one of the country's most populous ultra-Orthodox Jewish areas.
The statement said that normalization of relation with some Arab states will not provide security for Israel, nor will it reduce the “Palestinians' determination to liberate their land”, adding "there is no safe place for the occupation settlers and its soldiers”.
The Palestinian militant group Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, also praised the attack, saying, "We express our blessing to the Tel Aviv operation."
Iranian media affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) covered Hezbollah’s praise for the attack.
Al Mayadeen TV, a media close to the Lebanese militant organization, posted a video of Hezbollah forces celebrating the attack and distributing sweets among the people.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, however, condemned the killings of the Israelis and warned that the attack might lead to escalation at a time when "we are striving for stability".
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett told an emergency security meeting that "Israel is facing a wave of murderous Arab terrorism. We will fight terror with perseverance, stubbornness and an iron fist."
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also condemned the attack, saying, "This violence is unacceptable”.