Countries - The Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center

Spotlight on Iran (June 30, 2019 – July 14, 2019)

Iran, Russia and Turkey are preparing for another summit of the three countries’ presidents, set to be held in Ankara in August. In recent weeks, Iran has stepped up efforts to expand its economic influence in Syria and Iraq, signaling its desire to increase its economic clout in the region. Following the completion of formation of the new Iraqi cabinet, the Iranian ambassador to Baghdad met with the incoming Iraqi Minister of Interior, Yassin al-Yasiri, while the Iranian military attaché to Baghdad met with the incoming Minister of Defense. The commentator Hamza Abu Shanab, published an article in which he detailed Iranian assistance to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Read more...

Spotlight on Iran (June 16 -30, 2019)

Iranian media highlighted the statements made by the Secretary of the Security Council of Russia, Nikolai Patrushev, during the summit of national security advisers in Jerusalem. According to Patrushev Iran supports the war on terror in Syria and was and remains Russia’s ally. Against the backdrop of escalating tensions between Iran and the United States several attacks were carried out against U.S. interests in Iraq. Last week, the Iraqi deputy chief of staff for training and operations visited Tehran and met with senior Iranian military officials. In mid-June a senior delegation of Hamas leaders met the Iranian minister of intelligence at the Iranian embassy in Beirut. Read more...

Jihad al-Bina Association in Lebanon: A Hezbollah social foundation engaged in construction and social projects among the Shiite community, being a major component in Hezbollah’s civilian infrastructure

Hezbollah maintains an extensive network of social foundations in the Shiite community in Lebanon. These foundations deal with healthcare, education, finance, welfare, and communications. They serve as supportive foundations for Hezbollah’s military infrastructure, as well as a means of disseminating Hezbollah’s ideology and strengthening its position among the Shiite community and in Lebanon in general. Read more...

The Imam Al-Mahdi Scouts Association: Hezbollah’s youth movement which indoctrinates youth with Iranian radical Shiite Islam and serves as a source of youngsters who join Hezbollah

Hezbollah maintains an extensive network of social foundations in the Shiite community in Lebanon. These foundations deal with healthcare, education, finance, welfare, and media. They support Hezbollah’s military infrastructure. They also serve as a means of disseminating Hezbollah’s ideology and strengthening its position among the Shiite community and in Lebanon in general. Read more...

Spotlight on Global Jihad (July 4-10, 2019)

In the Syrian arena, the Syrian army’s ground operation against the rebel organizations in the Idlib region is still bogged down. In the Iraqi arena, the Iraqi security forces launched a large-scale security operation to mop up the northern and western provinces of the country from the presence of ISIS. In ISIS’s various provinces in the Middle East and around the globe, “routine” activity continues Read more...

Hezbollah’s Foundation for the Wounded: purpose, modus operandi and funding methods

Hezbollah maintains in Lebanon an extensive network of social foundations engaged in health, education, welfare, and media. The main goal of these foundations is to provide support for Hezbollah’s military infrastructure, to spread its ideology (mainly among youth) and strengthen Hezbollah’s image among the Shiite sect in particular and Lebanese society in general. Read more...

Hezbollah’s Martyrs Foundation: purpose, mode of operation and funding methods

Hezbollah maintains an extensive network of social foundations in Lebanon that deal with health, education, welfare and media. Their main goal is to serve as a supportive framework for the organization’s military infrastructure, to disseminate its ideology and to strengthen its position among the Shiite community and the internal Lebanese political arena. Of these institutions, the Lebanese Martyrs Foundation is of key importance. It was established by Iran in 1982, the year in which Hezbollah was established. Read more...

Spotlight on Global Jihad (June 27 – July 3, 2019)

The Syrian ground offensive against the rebel organizations in the Idlib area, which has been going on for around two months, is still not making any progress. In the Iraqi arena ISIS’s intensive attacks in the various provinces in the north and west of the country continue. In ISIS’s various provinces in the Middle East and around the globe, “routine” activity continues. The widely reported campaign of renewing the pledge of allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi continued Read more...

Spotlight on Global Jihad (June 20-26, 2019)

The Syrian army’s ground offensive against the rebel organizations, which has been going on for nearly two months, is still bogged down. The Iraqi arena: ISIS’s main event was a suicide bombing attack in a Shiite mosque in east Baghdad (10 killed and 30 wounded). In ISIS’s various provinces in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, routine activity continues. ISIS recently released videos filmed by its operatives in the various provinces. In these videos, the operatives are seen renewing their pledge of allegiance to ISIS leader Read more...

Spotlight on Global Jihad (March 14-20, 2019)

The battle for the takeover of the ISIS outpost in Al-Baghouz is coming to an end. In the Upper Euphrates River (the Al-Mayadeen area), this week ISIS engaged in intensive activity against the SDF forces and the civilians collaborating with them. In the Idlib area, exchanges of artillery fire continue between the Syrian army and the jihadi rebel organizations. In the city of Manbij and its environs, the SDF forces and the SDF-backed local military council launched an operation aimed at exposing ISIS and pro-Turkish elements. In light of the pressure exerted on ISIS in Syria, ISIS’s provinces in Iraq and abroad carried out intensive activities Read more...

Spotlight on Global Jihad (February 14-20, 2019)

The campaign waged by the SDF forces against the ISIS enclave, which has lasted for over five months, is drawing to a close. Idlib and its environs: This week, the exchanges of artillery fire between the Syrian army and the rebel organizations continued, at a higher intensity than in the previous weeks. In the deserts in eastern and southern Syria, the Syrian army carried out offensive operations against ISIS operatives, who continued to conduct guerrilla warfare. While ISIS’s main control zone in the Lower Euphrates Valley is about to fall into the hands of the SDF, ISIS continued to fight in other arenas. Read more...

Spotlight on Global Jihad (May 8-15, 2019)

This week, the main event in the Syrian arena was a ground offensive by the Syrian army in the Idlib region. Concurrently with the fighting, attempts were made in the diplomatic arena to prevent the continuation of the attack and the massive harm to civilians. The usual activity of ISIS’s various provinces and regions around the globe continued Read more...

Spotlight on Global Jihad (April 11-17, 2019)

In the Syrian arena, the ongoing fighting is now concentrated in the Idlib area. In the Iraqi arena, ISIS’s intensive activity continues in the various provinces in the north and west of the country. ISIS continued its media campaign designed to encourage and raise the morale of its operatives following the blow that it had suffered in Syria. Read more...

Wave of orchestrated ISIS terrorist retaliation attacks around the globe: overview and assessment

During four days, between April 8 and 11, 2019, the various ISIS provinces in Syria, Iraq and around the globe carried out a wave attacks in retaliation for the blow ISIS suffered in Syria. ISIS reported that eight of its provinces carried out more than 92 attacks in more than 80 areas. The attacks were accompanied by a media campaign and claims of responsibility entitled "Battle of vengeance for blessed [Province of] Sham" [Syria]. Read more...

Spotlight on Global Jihad (19-27 September 2017)

The Islamic State is disintegrating in Syria and Iraq. Its territorial areas of control Iraq are falling to the two anti-ISIS coalition forces one after another, although in some important strongholds ISIS operatives continue stubborn fighting. Read more...

Strong condemnation of Iran for its support of terrorism and calling Hezbollah a terrorist organization at an emergency meeting of the Arab League in Cairo

On November 19, 2017, the Arab League's foreign ministers held an emergency meeting in Cairo at the request of Saudi Arabia. The meeting focused on Iranian intervention in the internal affairs of the Arab states. Saudi Arabia complained of the launching of an Iran-manufactured ballistic missile into Saudi territory by the Iranian-supported Houthis. Read more...

The Gaza Strip-based Generosity Without Limit Association, affiliated with the Popular Resistance Committees terrorist organization, is supported by charitable organizations abroad. Some of the funds apparently find their way to the Popular Resistance Committees

Since 2007 a charitable organization has been operating in the Gaza Strip called the Generosity Without Limit Association (henceforth "Generosity Association"). It defines itself as a social-cultural association. An examination of the names of its senior activists clearly links it to the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), a Gaza Strip-based terrorist organization. Read more...

American aerial attack on senior operatives of al-Qaeda’s Guardians of Religion in Idlib: Initial overview and assessment

On June 30, 2019, American planes attacked senior operatives of a jihadist organization called Guardians of Religion (Hurras al-Din), affiliated al-Qaeda branch. Reportedly the operatives were in a training facility northeast of Idlib (about nine miles southwest of Aleppo). Read more...