Will the Assassination of Redda Al Moussawii Lead to Somewhat of a Settlement?

By Bill Michael

Against the backdrop of what is known as the “Aqsa Flood,” which designates the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, the war that has been a fixation for all, there is another current war Israel is conducting against Iran.
After a round of cyber warfare between Tel Aviv and Tehran which penetrated thousands of web addresses in Israel and halted the operations of gas stations in Iran, Israel assassinated Brigadier General Redda Al Moussawii. He was a top commander with the Iranian Revolutionary Guards in Syria for over thirty years and up till the last few moments of his life. His killing was a moment of maximum advantage which Israel found ripe to assert her superiority in media campaigns and intelligence gathering efforts.

Israel obtained information that it utilized fully. On Monday, December 25, Israel raided a farm in the Akrabah region which is located near Al Sayydah Zeinb district in Damascus, hitting Al Moussawii who was serving as the senior coordinator for Iran in Syria and who had held a command position within the ranks of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. He was responsible for Iran’s military assistance to Syria and had a private office in the Syrian Defense Ministry. He was also the deputy for the chief of Al Qouds Corp in Syria. He performed a very critical role in the delivery of military assistance to Hezbollah before and after the Syrian War. In brief, he was in charge of the military, the field, and the logistics support in the military frontlines of Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine. In addition, Brigadier General Al Moussawii had extensive relationships in Damascus. He participated in many of the battles that took place in the Syrian desert, in west Aleppo, and around the environs of Damascus.

Personal details about his killings emerged. According to the Iranian Ambassador to Syria, Al Moussawii was staying inside the Iranian Embassy in Damascus till two o’clock in the afternoon of the day when he was shot. He was with the ambassador at his office. In the late afternoon, he returned to his home in the suburb of Al Zynabiyah. Afterward, he was hit with three missiles targeting his house. His wife who is of Syrian nationality and works as a school administrator was not home when the house was targeted by rockets. She was still at work.

It is noteworthy to mention that this was not the first time when Israel launched an attack in the area of Al Sayyda Zeinab. Yet, it is the most important since the assassination of Emad Moghneiah on February 12, 2008. There was also the assassination of Moustapha Badr Al-Din near Damascus International Airport, on May 13, 2016. The killing of Brigadier General Al Moussawii followed an Israeli raid that shot dead two Iranian anti-aircraft missile commanders deployed in Syria.

On the other hand, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards issued a statement threatening a strong act of fatal revenge against Israel. At the same time, Israel has not acknowledged yet the killing of Al Moussawii officially. However, the Jerusalem Post quoted Israeli officials saying that they expect an Iranian military action on the northern front as a way to revenge the assassination of Redda Al Moussawii. Israel is in a state of emergency to deal with any potential military development that could occur along all the military arenas and fronts. In other words, the assassination of Al Moussawii is tied somehow to the current war in Gaza.

Several political observers think that Israel was motivated by the urgency to punish Iran heavily for her support and endorsement of Hamas. Many analysts assume that the assassination of Al Moussawii will not lead to a wider regional war. It will not gravitate into an Israeli-Iranian war either. The reason is that after the assassination of General Suliman Al Qassimii, no armed conflict broke out between Iran and Israel.

There are many ways how the United States gets into the Israeli-Iranian fray. President Trump said that Iran was informed before he ordered an air raid against the Ein Al Asad military base in Iraq in January 2020. The Biden White House gave Iran many concessions. It seems that regardless of the nervousness that characterizes American-Iranian relations, the abrasive rhetoric will not go beyond the rules of the engagements that the two sides abide by. No one knows, the assassination of Al Moussawii might change the lofty thinking of many people involved in the Middle East crises. It could lead to the end of the war in Gaza. It could make the Middle East a stable region again.

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