Iran International
Iran created proxies to protect the Islamic government and now they're engaged in a direct conflict with Israel to protect their proxies, leading to a failed strategy, said one former spokesperson for the government of Israel.
Eylon Levy, the former voice of the Israeli government during the October 7 Hamas invasion, discussed Israel's latest strike in Iran, and how Iran's failed strategy is impacting the next front in this seemingly never-ending saga on Eye for Iran.
Levy, who in his previous role attended high-level meetings with Israel’s top decision-makers, has a deep understanding of Israel’s strategic planning and calculations. He viewed Israel’s October 26 counterstrike as both powerful and effective in targeting Iran’s military capabilities, yet measured in its restraint.
Levy, who with his former job attended high level meetings with leading decision
Levy noted that understanding the Islamic Republic’s strategy is challenging, as he believes the government operates with a strong influence of theological motivations.
"I don't think it's unthinkable we could end up in spiral of escalation," said Levy.
He said the proxies Iran created to combat Israel and maintain their power in the greater region has proven to be a liability for Iran's leadership.
"Because Hamas' leaders went rogue on October 7th and invaded Israel in the hopes of sparking a regional war that has now dragged Iran into it. Iran is seeing direct Israeli air strikes which would have been unthinkable a while ago."
In light of Israel's resolve and the recent setbacks to its proxies, will Iran double down on its current objectives, or choose steps toward de-escalation?
Levy stated that the next move is up to Iran, with the ball now firmly in its court. Some Israeli parliament members have noted that Israel has yet to respond to Hezbollah's drone attack on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's seaside residence last month, with some even calling for a second retaliatory strike against Iran.
However, Iran has vowed to strike back against Israel with what they describe as a painful response for the October 26th air strikes.
Current intelligence indicates that Iran may be preparing an attack on Israel in coming days, according to multiple news reports.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced Friday that the US is sending additional bomber aircraft and Navy warships to the Middle East to bolster America's presence in the region.
Levy doesn't see an end to the conflict between Iran and Israel unless the current establishment is overthrown in Iran.
As an Israeli citizen who sheltered while Iran launched nearly 200 ballistic missiles on Oct 1, he understands that Iran's direct aggression is a red line for the government of Israel.
"That's not going to become the new normal in a way that we were told rockets from Hamas and Hezbollah were," said Levy.
"Oct 1 was a red line for them and they wouldn't allow Iran's direct ballistic missiles to be new normal, that was intention of Israel's response to uphold deterrence," he added.
As the world awaits to see what Iran's next move is, Levy points out that if people take Iran's leadership by their word, then a further escalation and potential for things to get out of control, could be happening soon.
For the full episode, you can watch it on Youtube or listen to it on Spotify, Castbox, Apple, Amazon or Spotify.
Staring into a camera for a post on X, she pinned a mythological symbol evoking Iran's ancient glory onto her shirt and tied back her flowing hair - a symbol of female freedom in the crosshairs of hijab laws back home.
Speaking to Iran International, Gazelle described herself as being in flight or fight mode and not yet fully grasping the loss of her father, Jamshid Sharmahd.
“I'm not feeling anything. I'm just in shock,” she said.
She is haunted by questions and demands proof of her father’s death.
“How did they execute him? Was he poisoned? Did he die under torture?”
According to high-ranking German authorities the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic alleged that “Jimmy died” but the lawyers of his family are still awaiting verification of what really happened.
Gazelle said her father was an activist and journalist who opposed the Islamic Republic and fought them using his expertise as a software engineer to create a website where Iranians inside the country could report human rights abuses.
He created VPNs and helped secure IP addresses so they wouldn’t get tracked by the government, Gazelle said.
Authorities accused him of terrorism for allegedly orchestrating a series of deadly bomb attacks inside Iran. He had been living in the United States for the past two decades.
Gazelle and leading human rights experts have denied the charges, saying confessions at his trial were made under duress and that his activism and criticism of the Islamic Republic made him a target.
A United Nations human rights expert in 2022 described Jamshid’s detention as arbitrary, and Amnesty International referred to his trial as a sham.
Fear beyond borders
Jamshid Sharmahd's case represents the peril faced by Iranian dissidents far beyond its borders.
In 2020, journalist Ruhollah Zam, a French citizen, was executed in Iran after being lured from Paris to Iraq under the guise of working on a story.
In February 2024, US authorities charged an Iranian national allegedly operating on behalf of the Iran to kill dissidents abroad, and two Canadian men with ties to the Hells Angels biker gang were arrested in an alleged plot to carry out assassinations in Maryland.
Outspoken human rights activist Masih Alinejad was one of them.
In 2021, the FBI thwarted an alleged kidnapping plot against Alinejad and an alleged assassination attempt the following year. The FBI said both plots were linked to Iran.
Criminal gangs operating on the behest of the Islamic Republic of Iran are behind a string of terror attacks on Israeli embassies in Europe since October 7, according to Israeli and Swedish Intelligence agencies.
Abducted in real time
Jamshid was sentenced to death in 2022 for “corruption on Earth,” sparking condemnation from human rights groups and Western governments.
The 69-year-old suffered from Parkinson’s disease and grew up in Germany and spent most of his adult life raising his family in the United States. While on a layover in Dubai in 2020, he was abducted from his hotel by Iranian agents.
Gazelle said she saw the entire kidnapping unfold from her father’s google tracker.
“We could see how his taken from his hotel room to the border to Oman to the coast of Oman. And then the tracker breaks off,” she said.
The German government announced Thursday that it would close three Islamic Republic consulates in response to the execution of the dual citizen. Germany’s foreign minister called it an assassination.
In an email to Iran International, a US State Department spokesperson said the US joins Germany in condemning his execution and supports their move in shutting down Tehran's consulates.
“Sharmahd’s execution was an abhorrent act by the Iranian regime and underscores that the record pace of unjust executions in Iran continues unabated, despite Iran’s attempts to promote a gentler face to the international community.”
Gazelle said she doesn’t need kind words and condolences and feels abandoned by both governments.
She questions why the Biden administration did not include her father in a 2023 prisoner swap that freed 5 American citizens. Now, it's too late, she lamented.
As she tries to process her loss, she said she will continue to call for justice and keep up what she described as her father’s legacy.
“He never will give up and we will never give up. You cannot break a freedom fighter.”
