The Wall Street Journal, citing information from senior members of Hamas and Hezbollah, has reported that Iranian security officials were involved in planning the terrorist attacks that resulted in the deaths of at least 800 Israelis on Saturday. However, U.S. government officials have stated that they currently lack evidence to confirm the existence of such meetings.
According to the report, officers from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) allegedly worked with Hamas from late August onwards to orchestrate incursions into Israeli territory by land, sea, and air. The operational details were discussed during several gatherings in Beirut, attended by high-ranking members of the IRGC, as well as representatives from Hamas, the terrorist group governing the Gaza Strip, and Hezbollah, a powerful Shia militia with significant military and political influence in Lebanon.
As of now, American authorities have indicated that they do not have direct evidence confirming Iran’s involvement. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken addressed the attacks in an interview with CNN on Sunday.
“We don’t have any information at this time to corroborate this account,” a U.S. official told the Wall Street Journal when asked about the alleged Beirut meetings.
Mahmoud Mirdawi, a senior Hamas official, informed the media that the group had independently orchestrated the attacks. He stated, “This is a Palestinian and Hamas decision.” A European official and an adviser to the Syrian government offered corroborating accounts consistent with the statements made by Hamas and Hezbollah representatives.
Breaking: Iran helped plan Hamas’s attack on Israel and gave the green light for the assault at a meeting last Monday https://t.co/7U1fUb3gXI pic.twitter.com/WIu1VBLtzd
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) October 8, 2023
A spokesperson for the Iranian government at the United Nations in New York declined to comment. Meanwhile, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has celebrated the attacks, stating that the “Zionist regime will be eradicated at the hands of the Palestinian people and the Resistance forces throughout the region.”
Abu Obaidah Hamas Spox:
— Iran Observer (@IranObserver0) October 9, 2023
Obaidah: We have decided to put an end to the Zionist opression of our people
Obaidah: From now on, every attack on our people will be met with the execution of one of the enemy hostages, which will be broadcast and publicised pic.twitter.com/0zC1avFBqp
Israel has blamed Iran, asserting at least an indirect involvement. Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, said in a statement on Sunday, “We know that there were meetings in Syria and in Lebanon with other leaders of the terror armies that surround Israel so obviously it’s easy to understand that they tried to coordinate. The proxies of Iran in our region, they tried to be coordinated as much as possible with Iran.”
