Periodical Studies

Spotlight on Iran (December 16, 2018 – December 30, 2018)

The decision of United States’ (U.S.) President Donald Trump to withdraw American forces from Syria was met in Iran with surprise and satisfaction by most senior officials and commentators. The news of the U.S. withdrawal reverberated in Iraq as well, where the Iranian ambassador declared that his country ended its military presence in Iraq. In late December, a delegation of Hamas’ political bloc in the Palestinian parliament, headed by the senior Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Zahar, visited Tehran/
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Spotlight on Global Jihad (December 20-26, 2018)

The most important event of the week was the US announcement that it intended to pull out its military personnel from Syria. An ITIC analysis of ISIS’s situation in Syria, Iraq, and the various provinces abroad shows that the organization has not been defeated, even though it was weakened following the collapse of the Islamic Caliphate. After the Caliphate collapsed, ISIS once again changed its methods and adapted itself to the changing realities.
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News of Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (December 19 – December 25, 2018)

The level of violence at the "return march" held on Friday, December 21, 2018, was higher than in previous weeks. Following the events, Hamas and the other terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip sent Israel an explicit warning. After the escalation in terrorism in Judea and Samaria during the past week (four shooting, stabbing and vehicular attacks) there was a decrease in quantity and "quality."
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Spotlight on Global Jihad (December 13-19, 2018)

In eastern Syria, the SDF forces, with Coalition air support, managed to take over most of the city of Hajin (ISIS’s main stronghold in the enclave under its control east of the Euphrates River). ISIS continues its terrorist attacks and guerrilla warfare in in the various provinces in Iraq, despite the preventive actions of the Iraqi security forces.
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News of Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (December 12 – December 18, 2018)

This past week events focused on four shooting, stabbing and vehicular attacks, three in the Ramallah area (one in the Old City in Jerusalem). In the "return march" and mini-flotilla in the Gaza Strip the level of violence was relatively low despite the escalation in Judea and Samaria. The IDF located a fourth Hezbollah tunnel near the Israel-Lebanon border. UNIFIL confirmed the existence of four tunnels, two of which crossed the border.
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Spotlight on Iran (December 2, 2018 – December 16, 2018)

Iran is keeping a low profile with regards to the “Northern Shield” operation carried out by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) to destroy Hezbollah tunnels along Israel’s border with Lebanon. The Commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC)’s Qods Force, Qasem Soleimani, visited Iraq and met with the country’s grand mufti. An extraordinary commentary published in the reformist Iranian paper harshly criticized Hamas
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