On October 7-8, 2023, the "General Soleimani" Telegram channel, which supports Iran-backed militias in Iraq, released several posters celebrating the Hamas offensive on Israel and asserting that Israel is approaching its end and will soon be eliminated.[1]
On October 7, the channel released a poster depicting a sinking submarine painted with the colors of Israel's flag. Titled "The Collapse," the poster's text reads: "Israel is approaching its death."
Additional posters show an Israeli fleeing the beach as missiles rain down, with English and Hebrew text that reads, "The beginning of the end"; missiles falling on the Dimona nuclear facility; bodies of Israeli soldiers strewn next to a burning tank; and businessmen, their briefcases marked "Ministry of Economy and Industry," running as missiles fall.
Posters depicting a casket marked with a Star of David and Hamas paratroopers landing in balloons are accompanied by a quote by Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei: "Don't say it is impossible to eliminate the Israeli entity; there is nothing impossible in the world."
Another poster envisioning a huge explosion at the Dimona facility—while Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system stands inactive—quotes the late IRGC Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, killed in a U.S. drone strike in January 2020: "We will continue to fight and wage jihad until the land, sky, and sea become hell for the Zionists."
On October 8, the channel shared a poster depicting an Israeli tank marked with a Star of David resembling a light switch, with English text that reads, "Turn off Israel." Another poster depicts caskets draped with the Israeli flag, with text in Arabic, English, and Hebrew: "The Zionist entity is dying."
A further poster depicts a running Hamas fighter, an Israeli tank in flames, the Dome of the Rock, and missiles being launched, with the faces of Soleimani and slain Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) Deputy Leader Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis, both killed in a U.S. drone strike in January 2020, looking down from the sky. The poster's text quotes Khamenei: "The cancer of the usurping Zionist entity will be rooted out at the hands of the Palestinian people and the forces of the resistance in the entire region, by Allah's grace."
In the last few days, various Iran-backed Shi'ite groups in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, and Bahrain have celebrated the Al-Aqsa Flood offensive and published statements of support, including Hizbullah and the Ansar Allah (Houthi) Movement.[2]
[1] October 7-8, 2023.
[2] See MEMRI JTTM reports: Iran-Backed Militia In Bahrain Saraya Wa'ad Allah Celebrates Hamas Attack On Israel, Calls For Action Against 'Zionists' In Bahrain, October 9, 2023; Iran-Backed Militia Unit Listed Under Iraqi Government-Sponsored Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) Releases Video Message Extending Support To Hamas In Attack Against Israel, October 9, 2023; Iran-Backed Militias In Lebanon, Iraq, And Yemen Release Statements On Telegram In Support Of Hamas Attack – Lebanese Hizbullah: 'Rifle Of Resistance Is The Only Option In Confronting The Occupation'; Yemen's Ansar Allah Houthi Movement: 'Yemeni People Are Ready To Participate In Operation', October 7, 2023; Leaders Of Iran-Backed Militias In Iraq Vow Support To Palestinian Factions In Hamas Attack, Threaten To Respond To Any Israeli Or American Attack Against Them, October 7, 2023; Political Leader Of Ansar Allah Houthi Movement Delivers Remarks At Rally In Sana'a, Yemen, In Support Of Hamas Attack, Addresses Israel: 'Today We Saw Your Trained Soldiers Kneel', October 7, 2023.
