Iran lost its most reliable ally in the Middle East when an Israeli airstrike claimed lives Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. But Iran is not at the forefront of retaliation.

That puts Tehran in a quandary: If it doesn't respond, it could anger the militias it relies on in the region. Meanwhile, any possible retaliation risks a major war as the theocracy faces major challenges at home.

“By the grace and power of God, Lebanon will ensure that the transgressing, malicious enemy repents of his actions,” Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said after Nasrallah's death on Friday.

But Iran's 85-year-old supreme ruler made no mention of his country taking action following the death of a man he once praised as “an extraordinary face in the world of Islam” following the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah .

This reluctance continued until Monday, when Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani told reporters that “the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Iranian people are not looking for war” but for “peace and stability in the region.”

Although Kananni added that “any adventurous step or action against our national security or interests and our hands will never be tied,” he wore a checkered Palestinian keffiyeh scarf at one point during his speech.

These comments highlight the reluctance to respond to Nasrallah's death. Although his leadership of Hezbollah was the crown jewel Iran's decades-long strategy of arming regional militias To counter both Israel and the United States, Iran remains cautious about when — or whether — it will retaliate.

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