An exclusive from The Wall Street Journal revealed Iran's key involvement in organizing the most recent Hamas air, land and sea terrorist attack against Israel.
According to the newspaper, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) officers have worked with Hamas since August to mastermind Hamas militants and other armed groups' raids against the Israeli state.
In fact, according to the exclusive, Iranian security officials gave the final green light to begin the attack in a meeting in Beirut last Monday.
“Details of the operation were refined during several meetings in Beirut attended by IRGC officers and representatives of four Iran-backed militant groups, including Hamas, which holds power in Gaza, and Hezbollah, a Shiite militant group and political faction in Lebanon,” reads the WSJ, which cited senior officials from Hamas and Hezbollah, both designated as terrorist groups by the United States.
The attack, which represented the most important violation of Israel's borders since 1973, has so far left a death toll of 700 people, more than 2,200 injured and approximately 130 Israelis kidnapped including civilians and officers of the Israel Defense Forces ( IDF). This is without counting the consequences of the war on the Gaza side due to the reprisals of the Israeli State, whose numbers are estimated at 413 dead and 2,300 injured, according to the health authorities controlled by Hamas.
Despite long-standing ties between Hamas and Iran, American officials so far have not confirmed Iran's involvement in the attack on Israel.
In an interview with CNN issued this Sunday, the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, commented that the intelligence community and the rest of the Government officials have not yet seen "evidence that Iran directed or was behind this particular attack, but there is certainly a long relationship.”
Mahmoud Mirdawi, a senior Hamas official, also denied Iran's involvement to the WSJ, explaining that the attacks were an effort by Palestine and Hamas alone.
However, under confidentiality, Iran's participation seems confirmed according to the sources consulted by the newspaper. Furthermore, the timing of the attack comes at an ideal time, as the war poses a new obstacle to Israel and Saudi Arabia's efforts to normalize their relations, a geopolitical move that could deal a serious blow to Tehran.
The attack, in addition to hindering this diplomatic effort with the help of Washington, also comes at a time when Israel is distracted by internal political tensions.
Likewise, the WSJ reported that according to senior Hamas and Hezbollah officials, Iran is also making an effort to momentarily forget about other regional conflicts, such as its disputes with Saudi Arabia in Yemen, to focus on obtaining the IRGC foreign resources to finance and arm Israel's enemy militias.
Iran's involvement in Hamas' terrorist attacks against Israel would of course entail a high-level escalation of the conflict.
