Since Turkey and Syria broke off relations in 2011, Ankara has played a prominent role
in fighting Bashar Al-Assad’s regime in Syria by supplying material support to insurgent groups seeking to overthrow Assad and maintaining forces in the opposition-held northwest. However, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Assad recently signaled they are interested in restoring diplomatic ties.
Iran signed a new arms agreement with Armenia, seeking to increase its influence in the Caucuses and counter Israel-Azerbaijan military ties.
Yesterday, the US Treasury Department sanctioned three Islamic State facilitators based in Zambia, Uganda, and South Africa. The three have operated as part of a coordinated network that moves money between Islamic State franchises in Somalia, South Africa, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Mozambique.
Israel’s 228th Reserve Brigade conducted an exercise in northern Israel that included “combat scenarios in Lebanon.” Hezbollah published footage it said was taken by drones that flew over Israel’s Ramat David Airbase.
An Israeli drone strike on Tuesday morning in the northern West Bank city of Tulkarm killed two West Bank commanders belonging to Hamas and al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) began a new operation in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis due to Hamas activity and rocket fire from the area. The IDF’s 98th Division led the raid with tanks, paratroopers, and commandos. The IDF also announced the deaths of two more Israeli hostages in Gaza and asked civilians to evacuate western Khan Younis.
In a coordinated, multi-pronged offensive, Shabaab, al Qaeda’s branch for East Africa, assaulted multiple Somali National Army (SNA) bases across southern Somalia’s Lower Juba region yesterday. Each side has claimed victory, with both releasing footage purporting to verify their claims.
Bill and Joe discuss Israel’s retaliatory strike against Houthi targets in Yemen following the Iranian-backed terror group’s drone strike in Tel Aviv, the CENTCOM Commander’s surprisingly honest letter to the Secretary of Defense, and the irony of Pakistan designating Prime Minister Netanyahu as a terrorist (congrats to him on his new villa in Abbottabad).
Hezbollah increased attacks on Israel amid an escalation of Houthi-Israel tensions that grew after the Houthis attacked Tel Aviv with a drone, killing one person, and IDF retaliatory strikes. Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said, “The blood of Israeli citizens has a price.”
In response to the Houthi drone attack on Tel Aviv yesterday, the Israeli Air Force carried out strikes against Houthi targets in Hudeydah, Yemen.
Bill and Behnam are joined by fellow FDD expert and friend of the show David David to talk about the drone strike in Tel Aviv — what we know so far and what it means for the broader war.
Houthis in Yemen claimed responsibility for launching a long-range UAV that killed one person and injured at least 10 others in Tel Aviv on Friday morning.
The UN Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team has released its latest report on Afghanistan and the myriad of jihadist activity therein. To discuss, Bill is joined by former director of this team at the UN and longtime friend of the show Edmund Fitton-Brown. Edmund is now a senior advisor to the Counter Extremism Project and previously served as the UK’s ambassador to Yemen.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out precision airstrikes on several Hamas members in Gaza and targets in Lebanon. Israeli forces also eliminated a Hezbollah member in a Lebanon strike, part of a growing pattern of targeting individual terrorists. In addition, the IDF said an RPG attack in Gaza wounded a soldier.
New footage confirms Russia has begun using three-ton bombs equipped with “UMPK” wing and guidance kits, adding to the serious threat that Russian glide bombs already pose to Ukraine. Here is what we know about the new weapon and its implications for the war.
Iran-backed militias relaunched attacks on US bases in Iraq amid internal rifts within Iraq’s Shia Coordination Framework. Significant factions want an end to the international coalition’s mission and the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq.
Israel’s Minister of Defense recently held important talks with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, CENTCOM head General Michael Kurilla, and White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa Brett McGurk. Gallant spelled out Israel’s current strategy in Gaza and discussed threats from Iran and Hezbollah.
A recent Islamic State (IS) attack in Oman, coupled with the group’s growing capacity in Iraq and Syria, suggests that IS strongholds across the Middle East present a threat as formidable as its Asian branch.
The United Nations Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team reports that “the bonds are close” between the Afghan Taliban and the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. The Pakistani Taliban trains at Al Qaeda camps and has received high-tech weapons systems from the Afghan Taliban
(…and don’t walk out.) Amidst the chaos of this weekend’s assassination attempt against President Trump, the Israel Defense Forces took advantage of Hamas being on the ropes in Gaza by conducting an operation targeting two of the remaining top brass: top Hamas commander Mohammed Dief and Rafa’a Salameh, Hamas brigade commander in Khan Younis.
Bill and Joe unpack the strike and discuss a lesser-known terror group inside Gaza (is it the ‘Popular Resistance Committee’ or ‘The Committee for Popular Resistance’?), and the issue of battlefield longevity with which Israel seems to be grappling.
Hezbollah escalated attacks on Israel on July 13, followed by somewhat reducing attacks over the next two days. The IDF responded with a series of precision airstrikes on terrorist infrastructure in Tebnit, Rab El Thalathine, Ayta ash Shab, Odaisseh, Kfarkela, and Houla in southern Lebanon. In addition, two IDF units conducted training in northern Israel in case of further escalation.
The Al-Nasser Salah al-Din Brigades, an ally of Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist organizations, announced that it has disavowed Liwa al-Tawhid, a longtime affiliate. While the reasons for the split are not clear, the division may present an opportunity for Israeli anti-terrorism efforts.
The Israel Defense Forces targeted Hamas armed forces commander Mohammed Dief and Hamas Khan Younis Brigade commander Rafa’a Salameh on July 13. On July 14, the IDF assessed that Salameh was killed in the strike and continued attempting to determine the fate of Deif.
Over the last few days, jihadis have mounted two attacks inside prisons in Somalia and Niger. While the mutiny inside the Nigerien prison was successful, the Somali prison assault appears to have been thwarted. Nonetheless, both incidents highlight the lingering threat of jihadi prison breaks on the continent and the importance jihadist groups put on such operations.
An Israeli airstrike on July 13 targeted Hamas military leader Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, aka Muhammed Deif, and Khan Yunis Brigade commander Rafa’a Salameh. The pair were targeted above ground in an area between al-Massawi and Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released the first of a number of inquiries into the failures during the battles against Hamas terrorists in communities along the border of Gaza on October 7, 2023. The first inquiry focused on Kibbutz Beeri, where 101 civilians were killed and 30 taken hostage. The IDF also ended a two-week raid into Shejaiya, and Israel’s defense minister said 60 percent of Hamas terrorists had been eliminated in nine months.
The United Nations Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team reports that Al Qaeda is operating training camps in two new Afghan provinces: Kandahar and Takhar. The terrorist group now operates training camps in 12 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces. Additionally, the Monitoring Team notes that Al Qaeda “still uses Afghanistan as a permissive haven under the Taliban.”
Two Israelis were killed in a Hezbollah rocket barrage targeting the Golan Heights on July 9. Hezbollah claimed the attack was in response to the killing of one of its members. Israel faces multi-front threats, including from the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen and Iranian-backed militias in Iraq. The IDF uncovered six tunnels in the Shejaiya neighborhood in north Gaza and demolished them, the IDF said on July 9.
Hezbollah has used the years since the 2006 Lebanon War to build and acquire a formidable arsenal of mortars, rockets, missiles, and drones integrated into a vast network of underground facilities and human shields. Analysis of Hezbollah’s arsenal suggests that a major war with the terrorist organization could present serious challenges for Israel, underscoring its need for adequate air and missile defense capacity and offensive munitions.
Israeli forces launched a new offensive in Gaza City. The IDF’s 99th Division targeted terrorists, operatives, and weapons in several neighborhoods after calling on civilians to evacuate toward the south. In addition, Israeli forces continued to operate in Shejaiya, uncovering weapons and munitions.