The Israeli occupation requested that the United States act to deter Iran from waging any retaliatory attacks over its assassination of Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Israeli and US officials told Axios' Barak Ravid on Saturday.

The Israeli war has now been raging on for nearly a year, with the ongoing Gaza genocide and the brutal aggression on Lebanon claiming the lives of tens of tens of thousands of people, combined with full US complicity. Meanwhile, Iran has been taking a less confrontational approach, according to Axios. However, the assassination of such a major ally while flagrantly violating Lebanon's sovereignty is expected to lead to a major Iranian response.

The Israeli regime launched a massive air raid on the Southern Suburb of Beirut, leveling several buildings on Friday. Hezbollah announced the martyrdom of Sayyed Nasrallah on Saturday afternoon, pledging to remain steadfast on the path drawn out by the leader throughout the several decades that he served as Secretary-General to the Resistance party. 

Iran has been seeking to avoid a regional war while "Israel" has constantly pushed the region to the brink of war through its repeated assassinations and war crimes.

However, according to Axios, Sayyed Nasrallah's assassination "could push Tehran over the edge."

US President Joe Biden issued a statement on Saturday, instructing the Secretary of Defense to "further enhance the defense posture" of US military forces in the Middle East to prevent any escalation, claiming this was done to "deter aggression and reduce the risk of a broader regional war."

Reportedly, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government launched the strike that martyred Sayyed Nasrallah in Beirut without prior consultation with the US, even as Washington was urging restraint and pushing for a ceasefire over the table.

A frustrated, yet complacent US

Netanyahu has been causing severe frustration within the Biden administration by crossing red lines, carrying out attacks without informing the United States, and ignoring his administration's calls for a ceasefire. To add to that, now the United States must manage the fallout of "Israel's" actions once more.

"Nasrallah was a bad guy, but it is frustrating that the Israelis are doing this without consulting us and then ask that we clean up when it comes to deterring Iran," one US official remarked, as per Axios.

Despite complaints, the Biden administration continues emboldening the Israeli occupation, saying they support its right to "self-defense" against Iran and its allies, with Biden himself even calling the assassination a "measure of justice."

The Islamic Revolution Guard Corps confirmed that Brigadier General Abbas Nilforoushan, its top commander in Lebanon, was also martyred in the strike, making an Iranian retaliation all the more likely.

Israeli Security Minister Yoav Gallant has asked the US to issue public statements and take operational steps to deter any Iranian attacks. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin reiterated that Washington was committed to preventing Iran and its allies from "exploiting the situation" to "expand the conflict". He also emphasized that US forces remain ready to defend both US personnel and "Israel".

The leader of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, Sayyed Ali Khamenei issued a message for the martyrdom of Sayyed Nasrallah, saying that Hezbollah would live on and that the "strikes of the Resistance on the decaying body of the Zionist entity will become more severe."