Gallant Says Israeli Preparedness Building as Iran Delays Attack; Hamas Names Sinwar New Leader

JERUSALEM, Israel – While the Middle East waits for a major attack by Iran and its proxies, there's a war of words going on between Israel and its enemies. Nations far and wide are keeping their eyes on what will happen in the region.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told a group of Israeli pilots on Tuesday that Israel is ready. "Every day that passes we improve our readiness – both in defense and in attack,” Gallant said.

Meanwhile, in Beirut, Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah vowed revenge for the killing of his top commander and added that waiting to attack was part of his battle plan. “The Israelis want to end this situation. This stand-by situation is part of the battle,” he said.

In southern Lebanon, hundreds celebrated the selection of Yahya Sinwar as the next leader of Hamas. Sinwar succeeds Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Tehran last week. Sinwar masterminded the October 7th massacre of 1,200 Israelis and the kidnapping of 250 Israelis and foreign nationals, including American-Israelis.

The new leader is Israel's most wanted terrorist. He is still believed to be in hiding in the Gaza Strip, likely surrounded by some of those hostages as human shields.

Israel Defense Forces Chief Spokesman Daniel Hagari made it clear that Sinwar is the next terrorist on their list.

He warned, "There is only one place for Yahya Sinwar. It's (in the grave) next to Mohammed Deif, next to a Ghandour, next to Ayman Nofal [Hamas commanders Israel claimed it has killed], next to all the terrorists that were responsible for the 7th of October. This is the only place we are planning for Yahya Sinwar."

WATCH: ‘Dead Man Walking’ Yahya Sinwar New Head of Hamas

With the Middle East on edge, the former assistant to the U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Aryeh Lightstone, now the executive director of the Abraham Accords Peace Institute, says the Gulf Nations are watching and waiting.

“Well, for the looming war that they have right now, they know that Iran has been the number one instigator of malfeasance across the region – not just was, but are –and likely will be until the head of the snake (Iran) is cut off," he told CBN News. "They [the Gulf Nations] have been fighting the Houthis forever. It was the United States of America who told them to go easy on the Houthis."

Lightstone added, "When our allies, the moderate Arab states, look at the United States of America and see our equivocation after October 7th, what are they going to do if we ever need help? And what that does is call into question the efficacy of an American alliance.”

Lightstone contends that, as a result, the moderate Arab Nations are looking east, not west.

“There is no doubt about it that each country in the region has reached out to India and China in more robust ways because they know that the United States of America, under a Democratic administration, cannot and will not be relied upon.”

Lightstone believes Israel is on edge, yet he expects the Jewish state to come out on top.

He predicted, “The feeling is tense, but I think tense like a spring ready to be unleashed. And that spring, once it's unleashed, I believe, will demonstrate that Israel is once again the regional superpower that it was once considered prior to October 7th.”

***Please sign up for CBN Newsletters and download the CBN News app to ensure you keep receiving the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***