Israel pounds Houthi targets in Yemen in bid to halt missile attacks

“The resilient youth and people of Syria will not remain silent in the face of foreign occupation, external aggression, and the internal authoritarianism of a single group. Within less than a year, they will revive resistance in Syria in a new form,” Mohsen Rezaei, a member of Iran’s Expediency Council, wrote on his X account.

Rezaei's comments come amid a regional reconfiguration and shifting power dynamics in Syria following the fall of the Bashar Assad government. Earlier this week, Syria’s new foreign minister warned Iran to refrain from "spreading chaos" in the country after a call by Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei for Syrian youth to rise up against the country's new Sunni Islamist leaders.

"Israel is striking the enemies and those who thought they will sever our lives here, so it will apply to everyone," Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday.

"The Houthis too will learn what Hamas and Hezbollah and Assad’s regime and others learned, and even if it takes time this lesson will be learned across the Middle East," he added.

His comments came two days after his defense minister, Israel Katz, vowed to "behead" the Houthis' leaders in response to their ongoing missile and drone launches against Israel.

"These days, when the Houthi terrorist organization is firing missiles at Israel, I want to convey a clear message to them at the beginning of my remarks: We have defeated Hamas, we have defeated Hezbollah, we have blinded Iran's defense systems and damaged the production systems, we have toppled the Assad regime in Syria, we have dealt a severe blow to the axis of evil, and we will also deal a severe blow to the Houthi terrorist organization in Yemen, which remains the last to stand," Katz said.

"We'll severely cripple the Houthis, damage their strategic infrastructure, and we will behead their leaders – just as we did to Haniyeh, Sinwar and Nasrallah in Tehran, Gaza and Lebanon – we will do it in Hodeidah and Sana'a," Katz added.

“Iran should know, its proxies should know and the entire Middle East, anyone who tries to undermine the stability and security of the State of Israel, the IDF will stand firm against them, ready to strike at any time and in any place,” the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said on Wednesday.

He made the remarks at a pilot graduation ceremony, two days after the Israeli prime minister vowed to continue targeting anyone who tries to harm the Jewish state, amid growing calls by Israeli officials for more direct strikes on Iran in response to the ongoing attacks on Tel Aviv by Tehran-backed Houthis.

"Israel is consolidating its deterrent power, it is striking at those who seek to harm it, it is collapsing Iran's terror branches one after the other," Benjamin Netanyahu told the Israeli Knesset.

Netanyahu said Tehran was still "busy licking the wounds from the blows we inflicted on them", adding he had instructed the Israeli military in recent days to attack strategic targets of Yemen's armed Houthi group in response to their missile launches at Israel.

The Houthis fired another missile at Israel on Tuesday, despite multiple airstrikes by the United States and Israel against their positions in Yemen over the past few days.

The compensation is intended for “the Syrian people and the Syrian state, for the harm caused by Tehran’s ‘criminal and arbitrary’ policies to the Syrians and the Syrian infrastructure during its military alignment with its militias in favor of the regime of the ousted president, Bashar al-Assad,” Al-Modon quoted an unnamed source close to Syria’s new political administration as saying.

While Syria accuses Iran of causing extensive harm to its people and infrastructure, Iranian politicians are grappling with the opposite concern—the potential loss of billions Iran invested in propping up Bashar al-Assad’s government.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei addressed these concerns last week, dismissing claims that Syria owes Iran between $30 and $50 billion, calling the figures exaggerated. He explained that any debts would transfer to Syria’s new political system under the principle of state succession. “These figures, such as the claim of a $50 billion debt owed to Iran by Syria, are truly very exaggerated,” Baghaei said.

Conflicting reports about Iranian embassy reopening

Adding to the tension, an Al-Modon source denied any ongoing communication between the Iranian government and Syria’s new administration. The source said, “Communication between the new administration and Iran is completely cut off,” and added, “The new administration has no current plans to engage with Iran, whether regarding an embassy in Damascus or a consulate in Aleppo.”

This is while, the Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani on Tuesday said that Iran is in talks to reopen its embassy in Damascus.

This phase began with the defeats of Hamas and Hezbollah, continued with the weakening of Bashar al-Assad and Iran’s diminishing influence in Syria, and is now advancing as Israel focuses on defeating the Houthis in Yemen.

Evidence suggests that even Iraq’s pro-Tehran Hashd al-Shaabi militia has scaled back its overt support for the Islamic Republic’s agenda, leaving Tehran increasingly isolated in the face of an alliance comprising the US, Israel, and even Europe. Domestically, severe economic challenges and widespread public dissatisfaction have created one of the most difficult periods in the history of the Islamic Republic.

In this context, the overall US policy is combining political, economic, and even military pressure to push the Islamic Republic to the negotiating table. The aim is to reach an agreement stricter than the JCPOA, either halting Iran’s nuclear and missile programs or exposing it to intensified pressure and even potential military action if it refuses to comply.

Despite its structural weaknesses and mounting international pressures, the Islamic Republic’s leadership remains defiant. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei threatens nuclear weaponization and reclaiming Syria, while simultaneously sending signals of willingness to negotiate through diplomats like Mohammad Javad Zarif. However, it appears that the US, Israel, and even Europe are aware of the dangers of a resurgent Islamic Republic and are determined to prevent it from returning to a position of defiance and belligerence.

The chain of setbacks for the Islamic Republic began with Hamas’ attack on Israel in October 2023. Tehran mistakenly believed this assault would inflict an irreparable defeat on Israel.

Misguided analyses by the Islamic Republic’s leaders, particularly Khamenei and IRGC commanders, led to decisions that resulted in a series of defeats.

In response to the attack, Israel acted swiftly, strengthening its regional position within 15 months. This included large-scale military operations against Hamas, destruction of its military bases, and the assassination of senior leaders such as Yahya Sinwar, Saleh al-Arouri, and Ismail Haniyeh. Israel also ignored warnings from the US and the international community to launch an offensive in Gaza, leveraging force to reshape the Middle East.

The second major misstep by the Islamic Republic occurred when it urged Hezbollah to attack Israel’s northern borders in support of Hamas. Initially, Israel issued repeated warnings for Hezbollah to cease its aggression. When these warnings were ignored, Israel launched an operation dubbed New Order, which delivered surprising results. These included the destruction of Hezbollah’s command centers and equipment, as well as the killing of senior leaders, including Hassan Nasrallah. These developments fundamentally altered the region’s dynamics and demonstrated that, like Hamas, Hezbollah lacks the capability to withstand Israel’s extensive military campaigns.

On the international stage, the US and Europe, recognizing the Islamic Republic’s vulnerabilities, are now seeking to capitalize on this opportunity to drive significant changes in Iran’s regional policies. Meanwhile, Israel’s aggressive strategies aim to keep Tehran on the defensive.

Within Iran, widespread public dissatisfaction with the regime’s policies and economic mismanagement has deeply affected the country’s social and political landscape.

Popular protests and civil movements highlight the critical role of the Iranian people in shaping the nation’s future. The convergence of international, regional, and domestic pressures has created a historic opportunity to move beyond the Islamic Republic.