Israeli and US security officials have been trying for days to strengthen the Jewish state’s security after two consecutive attacks. Hezbollah and Hamas killings Action was taken against terrorist leaders last week.
Iran on Monday fuelled security concerns, claiming that stability in the region can only be achieved by “punishing” Israel for the alleged killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
Although an attack on Israel would be only the second time Iran has directly attacked Israel, despite years of aggressive rhetoric and use of force, it is consistent with Tehran’s long-standing “ring of fire” strategy, under which it seeks to surround Israel with militant forces and deter hostile actions against the Jewish state.
“The ring of fire strategy … is not devised in theory. It is the way the regime pursues its ‘death by a thousand cuts’ strategy against Israel,” Behnam Ben Taleblu, an Iran expert and senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), told Fox News Digital.
Pro-government supporters gather at Palestine Square in Tehran to celebrate as Iran fires hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel on April 14, 2024. (Hossein Baris/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
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Taleblu pointed out that nearly every militant and terrorist organization in the region surrounding Israel not only has Iranian support, but they also have access to Iranian weapons, including rockets, mortars, drones, cruise missiles, and, in some cases, ballistic missiles.
“What the regime is probably trying to do is to try to attack Israel from both sides, using a 360-degree attack strategy,” Ben Taleblu said.
Tehran has long relied on proxy groups in the Middle East to fight its battles, as Iranian troops do not need to be directly involved in long and deadly wars.
According to the report, Iran has provided funding, training and weapons to at least 19 terrorist organisations spread across Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen. Open-source findings by FDD,
In a photo obtained on August 20, 2020, Iran launched a missile at an unknown location. (West Asia News Agency via Reuters)
Some groups have received massive amounts of support, including Hezbollah, which receives $700 million a year, and Hamas, which receives $100 million a year, in addition to hundreds of millions of dollars sent to Islamic Jihad, data cited in the report shows. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant,
“Iraqi militias, Syrian militias and the Houthis have really become a key part of Iranian strategy over the last decade,” Bill Roggio, a senior fellow at FDD and founding editor of “The Long War Journal,” also told Fox News Digital. “They’re not paying a human cost for their involvement.
“The Iranians can play this game all day long,” he said.
Houthi fighters are using heavy machine guns mounted on vehicles to attack a rally in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. (Mohamed Hamoud/Getty Images)
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Both security experts said the US and Israeli strategy has been to respond to Iranian attacks with more sophisticated methods, indicating they can inflict pain on the Islamic Republic at a much lower cost than Tehran is able to.
But this approach has also led Tehran to believe that no country will respond with the same level of force that Iran is willing to use, especially against Israel.
On Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani claimed that “Iran wants to establish stability in the region, but this will only be possible if the aggressors are punished and resistance is created against the audacity of the Zionist regime.”
On January 16, 2011, a poster glorifying Hezbollah, including pictures of its leader Hassan Nasrallah and Iran’s spiritual leader Ali Khamenei, was displayed in a Beirut suburb. (Anwar Amro/AFP via Getty Images)
Israeli authorities are building up their defensive and offensive capabilities on the ground and in the air, as security officials operate across the region. The world is waiting for Iran’s imminent attack,
“It looks like it’s … a matter of when, not if,” Ben Taleblu said.
Iran carried out its first direct attack on Israel in April, when the IDF attacked the Iranian consulate in Syria, killing 13 people, including senior Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) commander Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi and his deputy General Mohammad Hadi Hajriami.
Palestinian militants take positions during a confrontation with Israeli forces in Jenin, July 3, 2023. (Jafar Ashtiyeh/AFP via Getty Images)
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In response, Tehran fired about 300 rockets and drones at Israel, causing minor damage, and no Israeli casualties were reported. Because 99% of attacks were stopped.
Taleblu said the April attack was a balancing act, as Tehran simultaneously wanted to respond with force but did not want to fuel a regional conflict.
But this time officials believe Iran has something to prove after Haniya’s murder on Iranian soil. sophisticated bombing planIt is believed that months of planning and preparation would have gone into it.
“This highlights the vulnerability of Iran’s security services, because this was a pre-planted bomb that could have been detonated remotely,” Taleblu said. “They are trying to make up for that embarrassment.”
Israel has not claimed responsibility for Haniya’s killing, but Iran and Hamas have accused it of attacking Jerusalem and vowed to retaliate.
Iranians burn a replica of the Israeli flag during the funeral of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and his bodyguard in Tehran on August 1, 2024. (Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)
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Officials believe this time Iran may try to collapse Israeli and US security in a multi-pronged attack, not only using more advanced IRGC weapons but also relying on a layered approach with its regional proxy armies lurking along Israel’s borders.
“The Iranians have fought a shadow war against the Israelis and the Americans for more than four decades,” Taleblu said. “And the trend line indicates they feel more comfortable coming out of the shadows.”
“This is a problem for anyone who wants to reduce conflict in the region,” he warned.
