Annihilate Jews, Win a State two!

[D2D]

 
Key Takeaways:

• Gaza Strip: The IDF is moving “more deliberately” in Rafah, according to Israeli officers who recently left Rafah who spoke to the New York Times on May 25.
  
• Humanitarian Aid in the Gaza Strip: A US Army landing craft and part of the US-constructed pier in the Gaza Strip was swept away by waves to Ashdod, Israel.
  
• Lebanon: Lebanese Hezbollah conducted at least nine attacks from southern Lebanon into northern Israel.
  
• West Bank: Israeli forces engaged Palestinian fighters in at least two locations in the West Bank on May 25.
  
• Iraq: The Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed one drone attack targeting an unspecified “vital target” in Eilat, southern Israel.

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-may-25-2024
                                                                                                                                       

[D2D]

Key Takeaways:

• Sectarian Tension in Syria: An Alawite organization accused the Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS)-led interim Syrian government of failing to address instances of sectarian violence. The HTS leader and interim government head of state Ahmed al Shara has attempted to assuage the Alawite's fears by highlighting the ways HTS and the interim government aim to protect minorities, but he has made only limited concrete, unambiguous steps.
  
• Changes to Education in Syria: The interim Syrian government has begun to implement changes to the Syrian government without the consensus of a representative Syrian National Dialogue Conference.
  
• Syrian National Army-Syrian Democratic Forces Fighting: The Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) has advanced southeastward towards the Tishreen Dam since CTP-ISW's last data cutoff on January 3.
  
• Iranian Nuclear Negotiations: Iran is signaling its readiness to resume nuclear talks, probably in an attempt to prevent the E3 (the United Kingdom, France, and Germany) from triggering "snapback sanctions" later in 2025.
  
• Iranian-Syrian Relations: Araghchi also reaffirmed Iran's commitment to a unified Syrian government and emphasized cooperation with regional countries to ensure Syria's territorial integrity, which appears to be at odds with statements by other Iranian government officials, including the supreme leader.
  
• IDF in Lebanon: An Israeli media and a Lebanese media report suggested that the IDF may extend its deployment in southern Lebanon by an additional 30 days due to the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) failure to dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure there. Lebanese Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem threatened to break the ceasefire agreement in a January 4 speech.

Syria
Axis of Resistance objectives:

• Reestablish ground lines of communication from Syria to Lebanon
• Reestablish Iranian influence in Syria

https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-january-4-2025

[D2D]

Key Takeaways:

• Iranian Regional Policy: Iran is taking a series of steps to prevent instability in Iraq after the fall of the Assad Regime. Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force Commander Esmail Ghaani arrived in Baghdad on January 5.
  
• Iranian Information Space: Iranian media outlets continue to stoke sectarian conflict over the Shia Sayyida Zeinab Shrine in Damascus.
  
• Lebanon: Senior Israeli officials indicated on January 5 that the IDF will likely extend its deployment in southern Lebanon if the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire agreement conditions are not met by January 26. The Lebanese Armed Forces likely do not have the organizational capability or willingness to meet the conditions of the ceasefire by January 26.
  
• Southwestern Syria: Recent skirmishes in southwestern Syria demonstrate the HTS does not yet have full control over terrain in the south.

Syria
Axis of Resistance objectives:

• Reestablish ground lines of communication from Syria to Lebanon
• Reestablish Iranian influence in Syria

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-january-5-2025

[D2D]

Key Takeaways:

• Northern Syria: Turkey and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) are preparing for a possible offensive into US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)-controlled territory in Syria. An SNA commander said that the SNA deployed forces to the line of control between the SNA and SDF in northern Syria. The reported SNA deployments and the current SNA axes of advance toward SDF-controlled territory on the western bank of the Euphrates River suggest the SNA may launch a three-pronged offensive designed to collapse SDF units along the eastern bank of the Euphrates.
  
• Tishreen Dam Airstrike: Turkish or Turkish-backed SNA air assets struck a Kurdish government-organized civilian convoy traveling to Tishreen Dam on January 8. The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) which is the governing authority in northeast Syria and is affiliated with the SDF, called on January 7 for civilians to travel to the Tishreen Dam and protest Turkish-backed military operations there.
  
• Iraqi Prime Minister in Iran: Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al Sudani traveled to Iran on January 8, likely to try to urge the Iranian regime to rein in Iranian-backed Iraqi militias. Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei appears to have rejected Sudani’s request for Iran to rein in Iranian-backed Iraqi militias.
  
• Iran-Azerbaijan Ties: Iranian Supreme National Security Council Secretary Rear Admiral Ali Akbar Ahmadian met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku, Azerbaijan, on January 8 to discuss strengthening political and security ties.
  
• Hamas-Held Hostages in the Gaza Strip: The IDF recovered the body of an Israeli hostage from a tunnel in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, on January 7.

Syria
Axis of Resistance objectives:

• Reestablish ground lines of communication through Syria to Lebanon
• Reestablish Iranian influence in Syria

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-january-8-2025

[D2D]

Key Takeaways:

• Fighting reportedly erupted along parts of the frontline between the US-backed SDF and Turkish-backed SNA in northern Syria amid indications of an upcoming SNA offensive against the SDF.
• The SNA continued offensive operations against the SDF around Tishreen Dam in northern Syria, possibly in order to fix SDF units there and prevent them from reinforcing other positions along the frontline.
• SDF Commander Mazloum Abdi said that the SDF came to an unspecified agreement on Syrian unity with HTS, raising the question of whether HTS would accept a lesser objective than the Turkish one of destroying the SDF outright.
• One of the most senior IRGC commanders in Syria discussed in a leaked video plans to rebuild Iranian-backed proxy and partner militia networks in Syria that would oppose the HTS-led interim government.
• The Iraqi federal government is considering integrating Iranian-backed militias into the Iraqi armed forces, which would facilitate Iranian infiltration and capture of the Iraqi security sector.

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-january-9-2025

[D2D]

 Iran unveils new loitering munition, announces separate push for 1,000 ‘strategic’ drones!

The large order for unmanned aerial vehicles includes Ababil-4 and Ababil 5, which serve multipurpose missions from reconnaissance, patrolling and combat operations, according to Iranian media.

BEIRUT — Iran’s powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has unveiled a new loitering munition dubbed Rezvan, which it says has a 20-kilometer (12.4-mile) range, according to Iranian media.

The new suicide drone reportedly has a flight time of 20 minutes and features a camera on the front that allows it to be controlled from a first-person view. It was revealed by the IRGC during the Payambar-e Azam (The Great Prophet) 19 military exercise, Iran’s semi-official PressTV said.

Photos in the Iranian press appear to show the munition as being launched from a likely man-portable tube, after which its four wings expand for flight.

“This drone enhances the rapid response units of the IRGC’s ground forces, providing them with new capabilities to counter terrorist groups, particularly in complex mountainous terrains,” Iran’s Tasmin News Agency said.

The unveiling of the Rezvan came around the same time as separate reports in Iranian media said the military planned to acquire 1,000 “strategic” drones in “coming days.”

https://breakingdefense.com/2025/01/iran-unveils-new-loitering-munition-announces-separate-push-for-1000-strategic-drones/

All paid for with American taxpayer money-Thanks Beijing Biden!

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The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced Thursday that the body of Youssef Ziyadne, 53, a Bedouin Israeli Arab, had been recovered in a tunnel in Rafah, in the Gaza Strip.
As the Times of Israel noted, Ziyadne was abducted on October 7, together with his son, Hamza Ziyadne, 22.

In a statement, the IDF said:

Yesterday (Tuesday), the IDF and ISA located and recovered the body of the hostage Youssef Ziyadne from an underground tunnel in the area of Rafah in the Gaza Strip, and returned his body to Israel.

Youssef Ziyadne was abducted on October 7th and was killed in captivity.

In addition, as part of the operation, findings were located related to Youssef’s son, Hamza Ziyadne, who was also abducted on October 7th, which raise serious concerns for his life.

Following an identification procedure carried out by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine and the Israel Police, the IDF Manpower Directorate’s Hostage team, which is responsible for accompanying the families of the hostages, notified their family.

The IDF and ISA send their heartfelt condolences to the families.

The IDF and ISA are continuing to operate in order to bring home all the hostages as soon as possible.


https://www.breitbart.com/middle-east/2025/01/09/israel-recovers-body-of-arab-hostage-99-remain-priority-is-living-hostages/

Democrats continue to side with his murderers!

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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/nF2z0LvA_Us" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/v/nF2z0LvA_Us</a>

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF2z0LvA_Us

[D2D]

Key Takeaways:

• Gaza Strip Ceasefire: Israeli and Hamas officials appear to be optimistic after achieving a "breakthrough” in ceasefire negotiations in Doha on January 13. Negotiations over the buffer zone and a continued IDF presence in the Gaza Strip remain sticking points.
  
• Hamas Reconstitution: Hamas is attempting to rebuild its military organization, but persistent IDF pressure and the severely degraded state of Hamas’ military forces will make this process extremely difficult and long. Current Israeli military operations are designed to prevent the successful regeneration of Hamas by denying Hamas adequate safe areas to train new recruits, particularly in the northern Gaza Strip.
  
• Hamas Leadership: The Wall Street Journal reported that senior Hamas military commander in the Gaza Strip Mohammad Sinwar has reportedly begun operating autonomously from the main Hamas leadership and ignored the Hamas decision to make decisions through a leadership council. Sinwar has likely delegated control of day-to-day efforts in the northern Gaza Strip to Hamas Gaza City Brigade commander Izz al Din al Haddad.
  
• Turkish and Syrian National Army (SNA) Operations: Turkey and the SNA may be attempting to stretch the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)’s bandwidth by threatening multiple areas simultaneously. Turkey has continued to support SNA efforts to isolate and destroy SDF elements along the Euphrates River.
  
• SDF Bridgeheads on the Euphrates: Neither the SDF nor SNA appears to have made any significant territorial gains around the bridgeheads, but the pressure that the SNA has put these bridgeheads under will make it difficult for the SDF to disengage and withdraw in good order if the SNA or Turkey forces the SDF to contend with a threat to their rear. Withdrawing a military force while under enemy pressure is an extremely difficult undertaking, particularly when the withdrawing force comes under pressure from a large military force.

Syria
Axis of Resistance objectives:

• Reestablish ground lines of communication through Syria to Lebanon
• Reestablish Iranian influence in Syria

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-january-13-2025

[D2D]

Key Takeaways:

• Syria: Small pockets of locally organized, armed resistance against HTS have emerged in Syria. The expansion of such resistance would strain the bandwidth of HTS-led forces and impede any efforts to suppress this resistance.
  
• Iraq: KRG President Nechirvan Barzani met with prominent Sunni politicians in Baghdad, which is consistent with early indications that Kurdish and Sunni parties are trying to build a political coalition ahead of the Iraqi parliamentary elections in October 2025.
  
• Gaza Strip: Israel and Hamas made significant progress toward a ceasefire-hostage agreement. They appear to have yet to resolve disagreement over whether the IDF would withdraw from the Netzarim and Philadelphi corridors, however.

Syria
Axis of Resistance objectives:

• Reestablish ground lines of communication through Syria to Lebanon
• Reestablish Iranian influence in Syria

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-january-14-2025

[D2D]

Key Takeaways:

• Gaza Strip Ceasefire: Israel and Hamas approved a ceasefire-hostage agreement on January 15. Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al Thani announced that mediators from the United States, Qatar, and Egypt will monitor the ceasefire, which will take effect on January 19. Hamas appears to have agreed to allow the IDF to remain in the Philadelphi Corridor, an operationally and strategically significant IDF-held area in the southern Gaza Strip, during at least the first phase of the ceasefire.
  
• Iraqi Parliamentary Politics: A large number of Iraqi political parties boycotted parliament on January 15, likely to demonstrate their ability to rally sufficient support to block parliament. The Iraqi Parliament Speaker and his allies, including the United Sunni Leadership Coalition, may also have deliberately blocked the General Amnesty Law in order to block the passage of the Intelligence Service Law, which was also on the agenda.
  
• Syria-Turkey Meeting: Syrian interim government officials met with senior Turkish defense officials in Ankara on January 15, likely to discuss military coordination as well as Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) and Turkish efforts to coerce the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to disarm. The Syrian delegation in Ankara also likely briefed Turkish officials on the progress of their negotiations with the SDF. The SDF has continued to push back against HTS demands for its disarmament and integration into the Syrian Defense Ministry.

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-january-15-2025

[D2D]

Key Takeaways:

• Iraqi Sunni Coalition: The newly-formed Iraqi United Sunni Leadership Coalition (USLC) called on the Mohammad Shia al Sudani administration to implement nine long-standing Sunni demands on January 18. It is unlikely that the United Sunni Leadership Coalition (USLC) will be able to achieve most or all of these demands. The coalition therefore likely published these demands to rally support from Iraqi Sunnis ahead of the October 2025 parliamentary elections.
  
• Iraqi Parliamentary Politics: The Iraqi parliamentary leadership placed an amendment that appears to benefit Kurdish political parties on the parliamentary agenda for January 19, likely to try to ensure that Kurdish political parties attend parliament on January 19. The participation of Kurdish parties in parliament on January 19 would make it more difficult for Sunni parties to prevent a quorum.
  
• Ceasefire-Hostage Deal: The Israeli government approved the Israel-Hamas ceasefire-hostage deal on January 18. It will enter into effect at 0130 ET on January 19. Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir resigned on January 18 after the Israeli government approved the ceasefire deal.
  
• Palestinian Authority in the Gaza Strip: The Palestinian Authority (PA) seeks to lead post-war governance in the Gaza Strip, but assuming governing authority will almost certainly require a military confrontation with Hamas. IDF operations have destroyed Hamas as a military organization, but small Hamas cells will remain capable of resisting a PA takeover after the IDF leaves. Hamas‘ cells cannot defeat PA security forces in battles at this time, but the PA would need to seek out and destroy these Hamas cells to prevent Hamas from gradually rebuilding and overthrowing the PA’s new authority.
  
• Syrian Democratic Forces: The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is reportedly continuing to pursue a decentralized government against Turkish and Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) pressure. The SDF’s outreach to Raqqa may be an attempt to secure local Arab support ahead of a potential Turkish and Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) attack into SDF territory.
  
• Assassination in Iran: An unidentified individual, likely an Iranian Judicial office service employee, killed two senior Iranian Supreme Court judges, Mohammad Moghiseh and Ali Razini, at the Iranian Supreme Court in Tehran on January 18. The official Iranian response to this attack has not yet materialized, but incidents like this often trigger paranoia about infiltration and foreign plots. The way Iran responds to the incident will indicate whether it perceives a broader security threat.

Syria
Axis of Resistance objectives:

• Reestablish ground lines of communication from Syria to Lebanon
• Reestablish Iranian influence in Syria

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-january-18-2025