(suspenseful music) – Iran-backed groups form a land bridge across the Middle East
and connect in an alliance that Iran calls the Axis of Resistance. Its focus, to oppose the West. They can both transport
equipment and personnel, but they can also use these
positions to attack US interests or threaten Israel closer to its borders. The alliance has been brought into focus amid the Hamas-Israel War as the groups are mobilizing
on multiple fronts. – [Cameraperson] Whoa. – At the same time. So here's how Iran built out the network across the Middle East and what it means for the US and Israel.
So to show you where Iran's so-called
Axis of Resistance works in the Middle East, we
have Iran over here, and then, of course,
Hamas in Gaza over here on the Mediterranean. There's another group that Iran supports in Gaza called the
Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which is actually a closer
ally of Iran ideologically, but also working out of Gaza
here and also in the West Bank. Iran's most important militia ally is Hezbollah here in Lebanon. Aside from that, they also have Syria's
president, Bashar al-Assad, here, and various militant groups in Iraq. And then, finally, they
also have an alliance with the Houthis in Yemen down here south. These connections allow Iran to expand its influence in the Middle East and make it easier for the country to transport military
equipment, personnel, and weapons through the region. One of Iran's aims in the Middle East is to always keep the
fight or the military fight as far away from its
own borders as possible, and the presence of these military allies and the land bridge
kinda helps it do that.
To understand why Iran
has this belt of influence in the region, we need
to go back a few decades. Following the Iranian Revolution in 1979, Tehran has sought to
exert military, cultural, and ideological dominance
across the Middle East. That led to the creation
of the Quds Force, a branch of the Iranian military, which was later led by Qassem Soleimani. Soleimani became famous in the West over the past decade or so, because Iran decided
to elevate his profile as the mastermind, the architect behind this modern iteration of the Axis of Resistance. (Qassem speaking foreign language) – [Sune] Later, Soleimani was killed in a drone strike ordered by the US.
– Soleimani was plotting
imminent and sinister attacks on American diplomats
and military personnel, but we caught him in the
act and terminated him. – The strike was aimed at
weakening Iran's ability to threaten American interests in Iraq and across the region. But that goal hasn't materialized. Iran has continued to
supply groups such as Hamas with weapons and training. On October 7th, Hamas, designated a terror
organization by the US, launched a broad assault
on Israel, killing 1,200. Iranian supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, said immediately after the attack that Iran did not have
a hand in planning it, but supported it. (suspenseful music) To try and curb Iran's influence, the US works with allied countries to have a presence of bases and troops across the Middle East. Of course, Israel here
and Saudi Arabia here as its two sort of main and closest allies against Iranian influence. Jordan has also for very long
been a very firm US ally, and the US also has partners in the Gulf. The US also has a presence
in some of the countries where it's competing
for influence with Iran, for example, in Iraq, of course, and the US also still
has a military presence in Northern Syria where it's
been allied for many years with Kurdish forces in the
fight against Islamic state, but now, also maintains
a military presence to sort of counter this
Iranian land bridge or the threat from Iran to
US interests and allies.
Tehran-backed groups
operating in this region have been particularly
active since October 7th. So let's remove all of these and take a look at what's been happening. On October 7th, Hamas attacked Israel here on the border with Gaza. Israel responded with a major
military offensive on Gaza. But Iran's allies have also responded to this Israeli attack
from different sides. Most importantly, the Hezbollah militia in the northern part with Israel has engaged in skirmishes
with Israeli soldiers. Iranian militias in Syria
have also gotten closer to the border where they
have engaged in skirmishes. Down here in Yemen, the
Iranian allied Houthi rebels have both fired rockets
at Southern Israel, but also captured a vessel in the Red Sea. The Houthis also launched
drones and missiles to other commercial vessels in the area. That led to a US-led multinational
task force stepping in to try and protect one of the world's most vital shipping lanes. And elsewhere, Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria conducted
nearly 100 rocket attacks against US forces over the
past two months according to the Pentagon.
Even though there's been
these types of attacks with increased frequency
over the past decade or so, in this context, of course,
they compound pressure on Israel and help sort of pressure
Israel in this context where they're fighting Hamas and Gaza. (suspenseful music) Although Iran's Axis of Resistance has claimed attacks on multiple fronts amid the Hamas-Israel War, Middle East analysts believe
a wider regional conflict is unlikely for now. Even though other parts of this alliance have distanced themselves
from the October 7th attacks, the fact that there was
a big attack on Israel has given the alliance a bit of momentum, but also put a little bit
of pressure, to be honest, on some of the other militant groups, both to strike a bit of Israel and to come to the defense
of the Palestinians who are now on the severe airstrikes and the ground invasion in Gaza.
So far, groups in the alliance have been sticking to
calculated and strategic strikes rather than moves that could
risk a full blown conflict with Israel and its allies. (suspenseful music).