Iran’s proxies in the Middle East remain a powerful force
A recent altercation with Israel has exposed their limits
As Israeli aircraft pounded the beleaguered Gaza Strip for five days, starting on May 9th, officials in Jerusalem were at pains to point out that they were targeting only the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militia (pij). This is a small radical group funded by Iran, which had been firing rockets at Israeli towns. Israel’s strategy was clear. It wanted Hamas, the larger Islamist movement that controls Gaza, to stay out of the fight. This is because it has a much larger arsenal of rockets, many provided by Iran, which can paralyse life in Israel much more effectively.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “A power project”
From the May 20th 2023 edition
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