Israel is seen as an oasis of stability in a volatile region. That doesn’t mean we’re not affected by the chaos and unpredictability around our borders. We need to understand every threat in the region and the different terror groups on Israel’s borders in order to prepare for potential challenges. But when the situation next door is always changing, that’s easier said than done. We put together a primer to help make some sense out of our neighborhood.
ISIS in the Sinai
In 2011, a number of Salafi Islamist groups in the Sinai Peninsula banded together to establish Jama’at Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis,
or “Supporters of the Holy House [Jerusalem].” Positioned on our
southern border, they carried out numerous terror attacks, many of them
against Israeli civilian and military targets. In November 2015, they
pledged allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, rebranding
themselves “Wilayat Sinai,” or “The Sinai Province” of ISIS.
Hamas
Founded in
1987, this Islamist Palestinian terror group rules over the Gaza Strip,
on our southwestern border, and aspires to take over Judea and Samaria.
They took power in 2007 after a violent struggle with the Palestinian
authority. They’ve proudly claimed responsibility for many suicide bombings,
rocket and mortar attacks, kidnappings of soldiers and civilians alike,
shootings, and other acts of violence, primarily targeting civilians.
Khalid ibn al-Walid Army
The Khalid ibn al-Walid Army, formerly known as the Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade, or Liwa Shuhadat al-Yarmouk,
is an Islamist group on our northern border, native to southern Syria.
It was established in 2012, mostly of local families who identified with
the Syrian revolution. In May 2016, the Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade merged
with another ISIS-affiliated group to form the Khalid ibn al-Walid Army.
The group is
an active arm of the terror group ISIS, and operates in the triangular
region of the southern Syrian Golan that shares a border with Israel,
and Jordan. They gained notoriety when they took 21 Filipino UN
Peacekeepers hostage in March 2013. They often clash with other militant
groups on the Golan border, including the Sunni Islamist Jabhat Fatah
a-Sham.
Jabhat Fatah a-Sham
This
Syria-based group entered the arena in 2012 as Jabhat al-Nusra, an
affiliate of the terror group al-Qaeda, dedicated to bringing down the
Assad regime and establishing Islamic law. In August 2016, they
separated from al-Qaeda and changed their name. They regularly engage in
violent confrontations with the Syrian army and Shi’ite Hezbollah, and
struggle against ISIS and other Sunni groups for domination in the civil
war. Stray mortar and rocket fire has hit the Golan Heights, and the
battles can easily be seen from its mountains.
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