Orientul Mijlociu

The surprising and evolving intersections between the Jewish state and Islamic institutions.

Introduction

The term “Israeli Islam” may sound like an oxymoron, but Islam is present in Israeli society—and inside the Israeli state. Just under one-fifth of Israelis are registered by the state as Muslims; Muhammad has been the most common name for Israeli babies for years. And a series of state structures oversees, supports, administers, monitors, and polices Islamic practices and institutions in the country.

This policy is self-serving and justified on false pretexts, but it’s Iran’s sovereign right to promulgate in advance of what its leadership regards as their national interests.

The Iranian Supreme Leader tweeted last week that “The Islamic Republic of Iran believes the #Zangezur corridor is to the detriment of Armenia, and we reaffirm our steadfast position on this matter.” This followed his meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan on Tuesday, who was in Tehran to attend President Pezeshkian’s inauguration, as well as recent reports that those two countries secretly signed a $500 million arms deal earlier this year for drones and air defenses.

«Nous sommes un peuple parasite : nous n’avons aucune racine dans la terre, aucun sol sous nos pieds. Nous ne sommes pas uniquement des parasites économiques, mais aussi des saprophytes de la culture des autres, de leur poésie, de leur littérature et même de leurs valeurs et de leurs idéaux. Tout courant de leur vie nous entraîne, toute brise soufflant dans leurs régions nous porte. Faut-il alors s’étonner de n’être rien aux yeux des autres peuples ?» -A.D Gordon idéologue sioniste 1856/1922

Hezbollah is an Iranian-sponsored, internationally sanctioned terrorist group with an anti-Israel and anti-U.S. agenda. Hezbollah is primarily based in Lebanon, but has carried out terrorist and criminal operations around the world.

For many, Haniyeh will remain a symbol of resistance in the face of Israeli occupation.

Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh has been assassinated in Tehran at the age of 62 in what the Palestinian group has described as “a treacherous Zionist raid on his residence”.

Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr has long been wanted by the US. On Tuesday, Israel said it killed him.
The Israeli army said Shukr was targeted in an airstrike in Beirut because he was behind a rocket attack in the Golan Heights that killed 12 youths over the weekend.

ISIS carried out at least 29 confirmed attacks in June in the Homs, Hama, Raqqa, Deir Ez Zor, and Aleppo governorates. These attacks killed at least 49 pro-Assad regime soldiers and two civilians and wounded at least 23 more soldiers and civilians. There were also 12 high quality* attacks carried out during the month. The level of violence increased in June by every metric compared to May. However, most of these attacks occurred in the first half of the month amid a series of regime military operations in eastern Homs. As in May, there were relatively few attacks in Deir Ez Zor and Hama, as Homs remained the center of ISIS activity in the Badia.

Netanyahu shapes the battlefield — but for peace or large-scale escalation?

Paul Salem
Vice President for International Engagement

The killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and the killing of a Hezbollah senior commander in Beirut could be designed to allow Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to declare some victories and move toward winding down the war in Gaza, or they may signal his intentions to escalate the conflict and possibly drag the US into a wider regional contest with Iran and Hezbollah.

Iran and Hezbollah are now under tremendous pressure to respond in kind, which would set off a massive escalatory spiral; to see off this risk, diplomats must engage in immediate crisis management, followed by real de-escalation.