Iran
Israel’s eastern border, its longest, has seen a sharp spike in arms smuggling in recent years, and Iran-backed militias have increasingly been trying to infiltrate into the kingdom.
The Iran-backed Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for the attack “in support of Gaza.”
Naval helicopters responded to a distress call in the Red Sea.
The Israeli Air Force continues to strike multiple Hezbollah targets in Southern Lebanon.
It followed Tehran’s mid-December execution of a fifth accused Israeli spy.
“There is a reason why most of Iran’s nuclear expansion has occurred since Biden’s election and his abandonment of pressure,” said Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
Gen. Sayyed Razi Mousavi was involved in smuggling weapons from Iran, manufacturing weapons in Syria and transferring funds to Hezbollah.
Mourners chanted “Death to Israel” and “Death to America” at the memorial service in Tehran for the IRGC senior official killed in Syria on Monday in an alleged Israeli strike.
Hezbollah and its patrons in Tehran were surprised by the attack.
A group of Iran-backed militias claimed responsibility for the attack.
Hamas denied Tehran’s comments, insisting its murder spree was a response to Israeli “crimes” at Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
At the end of November Tehran tripled the rate of production of 60%-enriched uranium, according to the U.N. watchdog.
