Lebanon 

Hezbollah Continues Distribution of Iranian Fuel to Lebanese

This week, Hezbollah’s fuel company, Al-Amana, continued its ongoing distribution of “free Iranian fuel” to water stations in villages and towns in south Lebanon that were suffering from electricity shortages, so they could continue providing locals with water. Hezbollah’s Second Sector Municipal Works Deputy Director Khodr Doghman said this distribution effort would continue “daily” to cover the needs of all the locales suffering from water shortages due to the country’s ongoing electricity crisis. 

Iranian Embassy in Lebanon Distributes Ramadan Aid to Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon  

The Iranian embassy in Lebanon launched its annual drive to distribute Ramadan packages to Palestinian refugees in Lebanon this week. The drive was inaugurated at the Embassy by Iran’s Ambassador to Lebanon, Mohammad Jalal Firuznia, with Hezbollah’s Palestinian Affairs official Hassan Hoballah in attendance. Hoballah gave a speech in which he highlighted that the annual aid drive had begun only with the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran, to “alleviate some of the hardships” experienced by Palestinian refugees. He also said that this year, Tehran was going to offer “$50,000 to every family whose house had been demolished by Zionist occupation forces in Palestine,” in addition to other funds it would distribute on Quds Day to “the wounded, imprisoned, and martyr [families].” Hoballah encouraged the continued “intifada of our brethren in Palestine” until “the liberation of all of Palestine.” 

Israel and Palestinian Territories

Palestinian Militant Groups Express Intention for Escalation with Israel to Hezbollah Paper 

Over the weekend, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), both Palestinian militant factions allied with Iran, gave statements to Hezbollah’s official newspaper Al-Ahed regarding ongoing clashes between Israelis and Palestinians in Jerusalem. The two factions denied reaching a de-escalation or ceasefire with the Israelis to Al-Ahed, saying they would “deal with the occupation according to the facts on the battlefield.” They also alleged that “resistance” and “continued steadfastness in Al-Aqsa” was the only deterrent to what they termed the “abuses of the occupation.”

PIJ’s Media Affairs official Dawoud Shehab claimed that Israeli forces had “invaded Al-Aqsa” to clear it of Muslim worshippers and open it to “terrorist settlers who are trying to impose their religious ownership over Al-Aqsa Mosque through this tale about ‘sacrifices.’” Shehab claimed Palestinians had “aborted” this plan and that his group was not seeking de-escalation with Israel. To the contrary, he said that “if this aggression doesn’t stop…we will be facing an imminent and fierce battle with the enemy, for the reasons that led to the outbreak of the Quds Sword battle have reemerged today.” 

Hamas’ Arab and Islamic Affairs official Osama Hamdan similarly told Al-Ahed that the “recent Israeli aggression on Al-Aqsa” was merely Israel “taking the pulse of the reaction of the international community and Palestinian street towards further steps to Judaize Jerusalem and al-Aqsa, and taking them over.” He added that “all options were available” to confront Israel, and that “escalation would be faced with escalation…the Resistance is ready for battle if that becomes necessary.” 

Palestinian Militant Groups Gather After Rocket Attack on Israel

This past week, leaders of the Palestinian militant groups in Gaza met after a rocket was fired at Israel on Monday, to which Israel responded by attacking Hamas sites in Gaza. At the meeting, which was convened in the office of Hamas’ leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar, he reportedly stressed the need to avoid “independent” initiatives, like firing rockets at Israel, and that all such operations implicating Gaza should be coordinated by the factions and Gaza’s political leadership. Following the gathering, an official with PIJ stressed that “we, the factions in Gaza, will be a security blanket and provide defense for anybody in the mosque. We are in a state of utmost preparedness.”

Following this meeting, another lone rocket was launched from Gaza on Wednesday evening, which resulted in shrapnel hitting a parked car and a wall near a home in Sderot. Hundreds of ball bearings were loaded into the rocket. Israel’s Iron Dome also separately mistook gunfire for rockets, and it resulted in the activation of the system. 

UANI director of Lebanon, Israel, and Syria research David Daoud observed that “the sum of these incidents indicates the Gaza leadership, despite their rhetoric, is still reluctant to greatly escalate to avoid ensnaring the enclave in another devastating fight with Israel, instead preferring to focus on incitement in the West Bank and Jerusalem.”

Hezbollah Calls for Escalation Between Palestinians and Israelis 

Hezbollah officially weighed in on the rising tensions and clashes between Israelis and Palestinians this past week, encouraging escalation. The group’s Deputy Secretary-General Naim Qassem expressed his admiration for measures taken by Palestinians over the past week to “confront the Zionist attacks as part of their plan to Judaize Jerusalem and defile its holy sites.” Qassem, in a meeting with Islamic National Conference Secretary-General Khaled al-Sufyani and Hezbollah’s Arab and International Affairs official Ammar al-Mousaoui, also called for the “widescale Arab and Islamic mobilization” to confront Israel’s “ongoing crimes,” and denounced the condemnations by Arab and Islamic countries of recent terror attacks against Israelis. They also stressed the necessity for all Palestinian nationalist and Islamic forces to continue their “amazing uprising, especially during the blessed month of Ramadan, to reinforce the equation set forth during the [May 2021] Quds Sword battle.” 

Hezbollah also released an official statement condemning what it described as “Israeli occupation forces invading Al-Aqsa mosque, and their barbaric attacks on worshippers,” and hailing what it termed “the Palestinian people’s…heroic confrontation of the Israeli terror machine.” 

Iraq

iran-backed, Iraq-based Hackers Target Israel’s Airport Authority Website 

Iran-backed, Iraq-based hackers hacked Israel’s Airports Authority (IAA) website on Wednesday. The group, known as AlTahrea, claimed responsibility. It followed separate hacking incidents of the Kan broadcaster and Channel 9 in Israel. UANI policy director Jason Brodsky noted that “this operation appeared to be a distributed denial of service (DDOS) attack, which has been employed in the past by Iran and its broader proxy and partner network.” “We may see more such incidents in the coming days ahead of Quds Day on April 29, as that has traditionally been an occasion where hackers linked to an array of groups which receive support from Iran engage in hacktivism,” he added. 

Syria 

Explosive Charges, Not Indirect Fire, Responsible for Attack on U.S. Troops in Syria

Earlier this month, an attack took place on U.S. forces stationed at Green Village in Syria, which was attributed at the time to indirect fire. But this past week, the Pentagon reversed itself saying that upon further investigation it was instead due to explosive charges being deliberately placed near U.S. troops at the base. 

“Iran-backed militias have targeted U.S. troops before in Syria, including via rockets and drones,” said UANI policy director Jason Brodsky. “Iran and its militias have become increasingly impatient with the U.S. presence in Syria, which has resulted in more attacks there, with sometimes simultaneous operations in Iraq. However, the deliberate placement of explosive charges has not been a feature of their modus operandi in either country in recent months. U.S. officials are right to continue investigating the incident, which resulted in four U.S. personnel being injured.” 

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