Israel Declares Palestinian Organization Illegal Due to Ties with Iran

Israel has declared the existence of a Palestinian organization illegal due to its connections with the Islamic Republic of Iran and 'following Iran's orders.' According to AFP, Avigdor Lieberman, Israel's Defense Minister, signed the order to outlaw this movement and prohibit its activities on Monday, July 21. This organization is called 'Harakat Shabab' ('Youth Movement'). Israel claims that this organization targeted both Israelis and sought to destabilize the Palestinian Authority and 'overthrow' the administration led by Mahmoud Abbas. According to AFP, the Shin Bet, Israel's internal security service, had recommended to the Defense Minister that 'Harakat Shabab' be declared illegal. The report states that Shin Bet had sufficient information indicating that the orders of 'Harakat Shabab' were coming from Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The internal security agency claims that several recent attacks during the wave of violence over the past months in East Jerusalem and the West Bank were carried out under the orders of Iran and Hezbollah. The statement from the Israeli Defense Ministry published on Monday states that 'Harakat Shabab,' which was established under the apparent title 'Civil Movement for Change,' was effectively led by two exiled Palestinian activists. The Israeli Defense Ministry identified Mr. Munir Al-Asli, a Palestinian exiled to Lebanon, and Mr. Hilmi Balbisi, a Palestinian exiled to Jordan, as the leaders of this movement and accused them of having connections with Iran and Hezbollah and receiving orders from these two foreign entities. Israel claims that these two had transferred hundreds of thousands of shekels (Israeli currency) over the past two years to encourage Palestinian protests around the Al-Aqsa Mosque, bombings on roads, and attacks on Israelis in East Jerusalem. In the recent wave of violence, which has now entered its eighth month, forty Israelis have been killed and dozens more injured, while Israel has killed nearly 150 Palestinians on charges of attempting to attack Israelis and about a hundred others in protests and clashes in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza. 'Harakat Shabab' is the latest group that Israel considers a threat to its security. Israel also perceives Iran and Hezbollah as greater threats. The Chief of Staff of the Israeli Army recently stated that Hezbollah poses the 'most tangible threat' to Israel. Previously, Israel had also stated that the 'Ansar al-Sabirin' movement in Gaza was established by Iran and that some of its members, who had received religious and military training in Iran, had even converted to Shiism. 'Ansar al-Sabirin' has copied its logo from the logos of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah and considers its connections with Iran a strength. Until now, Israel's most significant practical confrontations have been with active Palestinian organizations such as Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza. Recently, Iran also invited Ramadan Abdullah Shalah, the Secretary-General of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, back to Tehran, where he met with Ayatollah Khamenei. The Iranian leader stated that the Islamic Republic takes pride in assisting any entity in the world that stands against the 'Zionist regime' and is not shy about stating this.