Iran's Humanitarian Aid to Lebanon and Syria Raises Concerns of Hidden Agendas
Before dawn on Sunday, February 19th, 2023, Israeli planes
targeted a building in the middle of the upscale neighborhood of Kafr Sousa in
the Syrian capital Damascus. The area houses a large number of vital, security,
and diplomatic buildings.
The attack, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human
Rights, resulted in the deaths of about 15 people, both civilians and military
personnel. Initial speculation suggests that there was a meeting of one of the
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) arms inside the building, headed by
the commander of the Quds Force, Ismail Qaani, who was rumored to have visited
Syrian territories after the February 6th earthquake. This has led to increased
expectations that the objective of the operation was to capture him.
However, Palestinian sources indicated that the meeting was
for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, and that both Ziyad al-Nakhaleh,
the group's leader, and Ismail Qaani, the commander of the Quds Force, were
among the attendees. The original target was the Islamic Jihad, not Qaani, the
sources said.
To date, the speculations have not yet confirmed the
objective of the operation, which the Israeli forces have not disclosed
anything about. However, it is worth noting that the building belongs to the
businessman Fadel Bilawi, who owns one of the exchange companies linked to
Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Lebanese party. According to the "Voice of
the Capital" network, the building includes two floors that are used as a
camouflage school to host Iranian security figures.
Iraqi journalist and analyst Hazem Al-Obaidi, in a statement
to "Al-Marja" newspaper, said that the operation targeted a building
affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, which housed a group of
Iranian arms and their collaborators, including members of the Houthi group in
Yemen, the Lebanese Hezbollah, and the Palestinian Hamas and Islamic Jihad
movements. They were planning to thwart an imminent Israeli operation against
Iranian interests, in addition to supporting the Iranian presence in Lebanon.
The area where the building is located has long been the
site of Israeli operations, which Israel claims target Iranian interests,
specifically the Quds Force and its arms.
The assassination of General Qasem Soleimani in early 2020
had a significant impact on the Quds Force and its arms, which are involved in
various conflicts in the region, from Iraq and Syria to Lebanon and Yemen.
Since his assassination, the Quds Force has undergone a significant
restructuring, and Qaani was appointed to lead the force.
The assassination of Qaani, if confirmed, would represent a
significant blow to Iran and its proxies in the region. However, it would also
likely escalate the already tense situation in the Middle East, as Iran and its
allies would seek to retaliate against Israel and its allies, while Israel and
the United States would likely seek to justify the operation and deter any
potential Iranian retaliation.