Israel Says Cruise Missile ‘from East’ Intercepted

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported intercepting a cruise missile originating “from the east” suggesting that the missile was launched from Iran-backed militias in Iraq. 

Historically, the army has referred to attacks coming from Iraq as originating "from the east."

The IDF also downed a "suspicious aerial target" that had crossed into Israeli airspace from Lebanon. The Iron Dome air defense system engaged the target shortly after alarms triggered in the northern town of Margaliot.

Earlier this month, a coalition of Iran-supported armed groups known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq launched several cruise missile strikes towards Israel, according to Reuters which claimed that the strikes involved multiple Arqub-type cruise missiles and notably targeted the city of Tel Aviv for the first time.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq has also been responsible for numerous rocket and drone attacks on US forces stationed in Iraq and Syria. Such attacks have been ongoing in the months following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict on October 7.

The militias, heavily supported by Tehran both logistically and financially, continue to engage in operations that threaten regional stability, demonstrating Iran's broader regional ambitions and its strategy of projecting power through proxy groups.