Israel and the Palestinian Territories

Iran Spreads Disinformation About Jerusalem Day

Israeli police issued a statement this week accusing Iran and terror groups of spreading false rumors on social media that the contentious Jerusalem Day Flag March would go through the Temple Mount. This was meant to inflame the situation on the ground to provoke unrest. 

Iraq 

Iran-backed Militias in Iraq Responsible for U.S. Contractor Death in Syria 

An Iranian-backed militia in northern Iraq was behind the drone attack that killed a U.S. military contractor in northeast Syria on March 23 and wounded more than two dozen American civilian and military personnel, according to U.S. officials who spoke with the Wall Street Journal. 

Lebanon 

Nasrallah Says ‘Hezbollah Won’t Hesitate’ to Assist Palestinian Militant Factions Against Israel 

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah delivered one of his periodic speeches last Friday, commemorating the anniversary of former military commander Mustafa Badreddine’s death. As is his habit, Nasrallah focused part of his speech on Israel, launching verbal attacks against the Jewish state, which included casting doubts on its durability and longevity.

Nasrallah accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of provoking the most recent conflict with Gaza-based militants, claiming the politically embattled Israeli premier did so to shore up his flagging poll numbers. Nasrallah, in making this claim, ignored the spate of Palestinian terror attacks that have struck Israel over recent months, and the recent barrage of rockets fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip by Palestinian Islamic Jihad over the death of Khader Adnan – a PIJ operative – from a hunger strike in Israeli prison.  

The speech was held as part of one of Hezbollah’s periodic, themed festivals – this one’s theme being “The Banner of Unity Until Victory,” referring to the Resistance Axis’ purported goal to have all of its component factions act in unison to achieve shared goals while setting aside differences. Israel’s demise is one such point of unity. 

As part of this unity, Nasrallah stressed that Hezbollah “would not hesitate” the Palestinian factions fighting the Israelis. Obviously, this did not include entering the fray against Israel on the side of Palestinian Islamic Jihad. But Nasrallah indicated that his group was assisting what he called the “Palestinian resistance” in other ways. "We are in constant contact with the leadership of the resistance in Gaza, and we will not hesitate to assist at any time that responsibility requires it," he said. In previous clashes between Gaza-based militant groups and Israel, Hezbollah assisted the former by providing intelligence and other battlefield guidance. Separately, Nasrallah denied claims that a well-known Syrian drug dealer – Merhi al-Ramthan – was connected to his group, calling such accusations “baseless lies” and “unjust accusations.”  

Syria 

Assad in Jeddah As Syria Officially Rejoins the Arab League 

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is in Saudi Arabia on Friday to attend an Arab summit where he is rubbing shoulders with leaders who shunned him for years, in a major policy shift opposed by the United States and other Western powers. Assad, long ostracized by Arab states as he turned the tide of Syria's civil war with Russia's help, is now being joined at the summit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who wants to build support for Kyiv's battle against Russian invaders. On Friday, a video circulated of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman officially greeting Assad and welcoming him to the Arab League summit.  

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