Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 188?

Jabalya police chief Radwan Radwan was killed in a strike in the Gaza Strip on Thursday night, according to Israeli media reports, citing Palestinian media. 

Iran has vowed to “punish” Israel for an airstrike in Damascus on April 1 that Tehran blamed on the Jewish state. Over the last week and a half, Iranian leaders have made repeated threats against Israel. This has led to heightened tensions in the region. Iran has a track record of threatening Israel. It also has a track record of using its proxies to threaten and attack Israel. What follows is a list of different types of attacks the Islamic Republic could carry out based on how it has behaved in the past.

A ballistic missile strike from Iran 

Iran has a large arsenal of ballistic missiles of varying types and ranges. Some are solid-fueled, and some are liquid-fueled, which means some can be rushed out to be fired relatively quickly, and others take time to prepare and position. Israel’s mortal enemy has used ballistic missiles frequently in the past.

Tehran used ballistic missiles to target the Al-Asad Base in Iraq on January 8, 2020, in retaliation for America’s assassination of IRGC Quds Force head Qasem Soleimani. Iran launched up to 22 missiles, targeting both Asad where US troops are based in western Iraq, and the Kurdistan autonomous region that hosts US forces. The missiles were launched from several locations in Iran, and 11 of them struck Asad base. Iran informed the Iraqis just before they launched the missiles.

A week of Iran’s threats to attack Israel has caused social media to lurch from one theory to another about when Iran’s supposed attack may come. Iran has threatened to “punish” Israel since it accused Israel of an April 1 strike on Damascus that killed a key IRGC commander.

On the evening of April 10, there were rumors that Iran had closed its airspace and told commercial flights to avoid Tehran. There were also stories about Iran testing a missile near Qom and that it was activating new air defenses. Hen, there were more rumors about how Iran would carry out its strike at exactly 1:20 am because this is when the US killed IRGC Quds Force head Qasem Soleimani at Baghdad Airport in 2020.

There was more scrambling as well. Iran’s Foreign Minister called counterparts in Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.  clearly, this was the prelude to Iran’s claims it would attack Israel. Iran’s own Fars News media on April 11 made the calls seem routine.

Amir Abdollahian and his Saudi counterpart Faisal bin Farhan held a telephone conversation on Wednesday during which they stressed the necessity of continued consultations between Tehran and Riyadh over bilateral ties and regional and international developments,” Fars News said.

The Iranian top diplomat also called UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.  The Iranian diplomat referred to the continuation of Israeli crimes in the month of Ramadan, especially during Eid Al-Fitr, against the fasting Palestinian people in the blockaded territory and the West Bank,” Fars News said. Mir Abdollahian called Fuad Hussein and Hakan Fidan in Iraq and Turkey.

Various weapons and combat equipment were discovered and confiscated, and two suspects were arrested in Eizariya near Jerusalem during a Wednesday night Israel police operation, the Police Spokesperson Unit reported on Thursday.

The operation was conducted by the Central Unit in the Jerusalem District, together with Jerusalem Border Police, the police dog "Thomas," and additional security forces. 

During the operation, the forces searched a house in Eizariya, located east of Jerusalem. Combat equipment was also found in several houses in the area, including rifles, pistols, ammunition, IDF uniforms, and more.

The US Middle East envoy called the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, and Iraq to ask them to deliver a message to Iran urging it to lower tensions with Israel following a suspected Israeli air strike on Iran's embassy in Syria, a source with knowledge of the situation reported to Reuters on Wednesday.

White House Middle East czar Brett McGurk asked the officials to contact the Iranian foreign minister to convey a message that Iran should de-escalate with Israel, which they did, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Iran's Foreign Ministry said that on Wednesday, the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Iraq spoke on the phone with Iran's foreign minister and discussed regional tensions.

The White House declined to comment.

The IDF conducted a targeted operation in central Gaza on Wednesday night while fighter jets and aircraft attacked dozens of terror infrastructures above and below ground, the IDF announced on Thursday.

Furthermore, combat teams of the Brigade 401, Nahal, and other units under the 162nd Division operated in central Gaza on Wednesday night, eliminating terrorists and destroying terror infrastructure.

Before entering the area, Israel Air Force jets, in coordination with Brigade 215, struck dozens of terror infrastructures above and below ground in the central strip.