Hezbollah's chief Hassan Nasrallah on Thursday threatened Israel with open war after accusing Israelis of killing one of its top commanders.
"Zionists, if you want this type of open war then let the whole world hear: let it be an open war," Nasrallah told mourners at the funeral of Imad Mughniyeh.
Mughniyeh, who was hunted by Israel and the United States for two decades, was killed by a bomb in Damascus on Tuesday. Hezbollah, Syria and Iran accused Israel of killing the man responsible for decades of terrorist attacks.
Israel rejected the charge, though its Mossad spy agency had long sought to kill him.
Israel officials has ordered its embassies to be on high alert, with security officials fearing Hezbollah may try to carry out a large-scale attack against Israeli or Jewish targets abroad.
Israeli intelligence officials said attacking an Israeli embassy or a Jewish target may be easier for Hezbollah than striking inside Israel.
The officials also said that Hezbollah might press Hamas to launch suicide bombers in Israel.
Earlier this month, two Hamas bombers killed an Israeli in the first attack inside Israel in more than a year.
On Thursday, Israeli troops bombed a number of abandoned buildings in northern Gaza that Israel said were being used to launch rockets at southern Israel.
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