Islamic Resistance of Iraq Claims Attack on Power Facilities in Tel Aviv, Israel

On Thursday, April 2, the news network of Hezbollah and several news agencies in Iran reported that a drone attack was carried out by a proxy group of the Islamic Republic, known as the 'Islamic Resistance Movement of Iraq,' targeting Israel early Thursday morning. This Iraqi militia stated in a statement and video published on the 'Al-Mayadeen' news network that it targeted 'a power plant in Tel Aviv' using a drone. So far, there has been no news regarding the drone hitting the mentioned power plant. Previously, the Houthis, another proxy group of the Islamic Republic in Yemen, claimed to have attacked the port of Eilat in Israel. The so-called Islamic Resistance Movement of Iraq emphasized its commitment to what it called 'striking the strongholds of the enemies in the second phase of operations in support of the Palestinian people in Gaza and in response to the massacre of innocent civilians.' The war in Gaza began after Hamas militants, a group supported by the Islamic Republic, killed over 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages in a terrorist attack on southern Israeli settlements on October 7. Most of the victims and hostages were civilians. In response, Israel launched an offensive against Gaza aimed at destroying Hamas. Hamas claims that about 32,000 Palestinians have been killed and around 73,000 others wounded as a result of the Israeli offensive, without mentioning the number of its own members killed. Israel has repeatedly stated that Hamas uses Palestinian civilians as human shields. Meanwhile, in the statement from the 'Islamic Resistance Movement of Iraq,' published by Al-Mayadeen and several Iranian news agencies, it was mentioned that 'the second phase of resistance operations includes the blockade of Israeli naval navigation in the Mediterranean Sea and disabling Israeli ports.' In this context, the Israeli publication 'Jerusalem Post' noted on Thursday that a photo of a drone carrying explosives was published by the Tasnim news agency, stating that this type of drone could have a range of up to 2,000 kilometers. The Jerusalem Post also pointed out that Tehran has been seeking to gather terrorist and proxy groups in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen to threaten Israel. It noted that Tehran has previously assisted Iraqi militia groups in enhancing their missile and drone capabilities. Al-Mayadeen also reported that the group known as the Islamic Resistance Movement of Iraq attacked Ben Gurion Airport using a drone for the second time in a week on Wednesday, April 1. However, this event was not reported by Israeli media, and there was no disruption in the airport's operations. The group also claimed that on Monday, March 19, it targeted an Israeli drone base in the Golan Heights named 'Palmakhim' using a drone, while no attack on this airbase was reported in global or Israeli media. Previously, on March 1, a meeting titled 'Tehran's Secret Army: The Proxy Networks of the Islamic Republic in the Middle East' was held in the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Many members of this committee emphasized the 'serious implementation' of U.S. sanctions against the Islamic Republic during the March 1 meeting.