By Jeff Parsons and Asher Stern

For decades, Iran has sought to isolate Israel politically and weaken its relationships abroad. The most recent conflict created an opportunity to pursue that objective more aggressively. While missiles, drones, and military operations drew global attention, a parallel effort unfolded elsewhere. Through embassies, proxies, and information operations, Tehran pursued these objectives through different means.

This was not a distraction from the war, it was part of the war around the war.

Throughout the conflict between Israel, Iran, and their respective allies, Iranian embassies spent weeks talking about President Trump, Jeffrey Epstein, Congress, anti-war protesters, and American taxpayers.

At roughly the same time, court filings and law enforcement investigations continued, highlighting Iranian interest in Jewish targets outside Israel. Across Europe, Jewish communities and institutions continued appearing in investigations tied to Iranian-linked actors and networks, while filings in the United States pointed to similar ambitions directed at Jewish targets at home.

None of those developments occurred on the battlefield. Yet they pointed in the same direction.

Across different countries and audiences, Iranian messaging sought to shape how responsibility for the conflict was understood. Sometimes the focus was Israel. Sometimes it was Washington. Sometimes it was the relationship between them. The route changed. The destination rarely did.

A recurring feature of these campaigns is the distinction Iran and its proxies attempt to draw between Judaism and Zionism. Formally, many actors insist they are targeting Israel or Zionism rather than Jews. In practice, however, Jewish institutions, community organizations, and individuals frequently find themselves caught inside the same pressure campaigns. That tension would reappear repeatedly throughout the conflict.

One of the clearest examples of this effort emerged through Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI).  In a video posted online shortly after the commencement of military operations, the group announced its intention to start “military operations” worldwide. In the following two months, it claimed responsibility for approximately 18 attacks, most of them directed at Jewish institutions, including synagogues, charities, community organizations, and medical centers.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation determined that HAYI was the brainchild of Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, associated with the Iraqi militia group Kata’ib Hizballah (KH).  The militia was formed in part to advance the interests of Iran, and it received extensive training, funding, logistical support, weapons, and intelligence from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). From the first day of the conflict, al-Saadi signaled his intentions,........

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