28 M AY 2019 REGION AL OVERVIEW – MIDDLE EAST · 2019. 5. 29. · 5/29/2019 Regional Overview – Middle East 28 May 2019 | Acled Data 1/ 6 REGION AL

5/29/2019 Regional Overview – Middle East 28 May 2019 | Acled Data

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REGIONAL OVERVIEW – MIDDLE EAST 28 MAY 2019

Developments in the Middle East region last weekincluded a general reduction in con�ict in Palestine,anti-corruption demonstrations in Israel and Iraq, andgrowing tensions between Iran and the US, as well asbetween Arabs and Kurds. Meanwhile, there wereseveral updates in ongoing armed con�icts in Syriaand Yemen.

Last week in Palestine, there was an overall reductionin armed con�ict events. This trend is likely related tothe holy month of Ramadan and the continuedcease�re with Israel. Clashes were reported betweenlocal Palestinians and Israeli forces in Bayt Furik,Saffa, Barta’a and Dheisheh refugee camp. Last week’sReturn March in Gaza was smaller than usual with only4,000 demonstrators reported to have attended.Attendance at the Return Marches has varied between5,000 and 8,000 reported demonstrators throughoutApril and May. Clashes were reported between Israeliforces and demonstrators as well as some injuries, butno fatalities.

In Israel, meanwhile, tens of thousands of Israelisgathered in Tel Aviv Saturday night to demonstrateagainst Netanyahu’s proposed bill to grant himselfimmunity against prosecution. Protesters wore theOttoman-style fezzes in reference to Turkish President

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Erdogan to symbolize the regime type that they oppose(Haaretz, 25 May 2019). Back in February, the attorneygeneral said he was considering charging Netanyahuwith fraud and bribery, however, no formal chargeswere �led. Netanyahu denies the allegations and hassaid he is the victim of a left-wing ‘witch hunt’ (BBC, 26May 2019). Due to Netanyahu’s inability to secure agovernment since re-election, on 27 May, the Israeliparliament (Knesset) passed the �rst of three motionsto dissolve the Knesset and call for another snapelection (NBC, 27 May 2019). The deadline to form agovernment is Wednesday, 28 May.

Anti-corruption demonstrations continued in Iraq lastweek led by members and supporters of the Sadristmovement. While support for Muqtada al Sadr’s anti-corruption movement has been the primary themethus far – and was the subject of at least one protestlast week – a wave of demonstrations led by thegroup also occurred in multiple cities on 24 May todenounce Iraq’s involvement in the Iran-US con�ict.The Sadrist Movement holds the majority of seats inIraqi Parliament and is a major member of the PopularMobilization Forces (PMF), a collection of mostly-Shiite militias – many of which are backed by Iran.

The protests are fueled by fear within Iraq that growingtensions between the US and Iran could lead toanother war on Iraqi soil. Iranian-tied groups within Iraqwere warned recently by the Iraqi government to avoidany actions that may provoke an American retaliation(New York Times, 15 May 2019). American PresidentDonald Trump has approved the additional deploymentof US troops to the region amid growing tension(ACLED, 16 May 2019). US representatives haveclaimed that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps isresponsible for a ‘sabotage’ attack on four commercialships near the port of Fujairah on 12 May, and that arocket attack last week on the Green Zone in Baghdad– where the American embassy is located – was also



https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/thousands-of-israelis-protest-against-netanyahu-s-immunity-bills-1.7284012https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-48411730https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/netanyahu-political-crisis-centers-requiring-ultra-orthodox-serve-military-n1010686https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/15/world/middleeast/iraq-iran-war-militias.htmlhttps://www.acleddata.com/2019/05/16/war-drums-rising-tensions-between-the-us-and-iran/https://twitter.com/ACLEDINFOhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/acleddata/https://www.acleddata.com/cookies-policy/



carried out by an Iranian proxy group. Neither attackhad any reported casualties (CNN, 24 May 2019).

Meanwhile, there were several reports of growingtensions between Arabs and Kurds in the disputedgovernorate of Kirkuk last week. On 18 May, it wasreported that 600 Kurdish families had been expelledfrom their homes in Kirkuk by army forces along withArabs, who overtook their homes. Local authoritiesclaim that the expulsion was initiated by the Ministryof Oil. The move lends credence to the idea of arenewed Arabization campaign in Kirkuk, similar to theone instigated under Baathist rule (Rudaw, 8 August2018). Kirkuk has been one of the main �ashpoints inthe con�ict between Iraqi Kurdistan and the Centralgovernment, particularly following the 2017 armedrecapturing of the provincial capital by Iraqi stateforces. Kurdish Peshmerga forces initially took controlof the city in 2014 during the Iraqi Civil War afterIslamic State (IS) launched a major offensive causingstate forces to �ee the city (Washington Post, 16October 2017). Reports of IS attacks on Kurdishhomes were also reported last week in Dibis district,along the border with Erbil governorate.

For the third week in Syria, heavy clashes continued inthe northwest along Greater Idleb’s DMZ betweenregime forces and pro-regime militias supported byRussian airstrikes, and rebel and Islamist factions. Themain opposition group �ghting regime forces is HayatTahrir al Sham (HTS). Hama and Lattakia governoratescontinued to be the main battleground as regimeforces attempted again to advance toward Kabanivillage in Lattakia, with no success. Meanwhile, rebelfactions and HTS recaptured the strategic town of KafrNabutha in Hama from regime forces for �ve daysfrom 22 May to 26 May before regime forces regainedcontrol of the town. Russian and regime forcesbombarded Kafr Nabutha and the surrounding areawith airstrikes and shelling, which resulted in 87reported civilian fatalities in the Greater Idleb area (Al



https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/24/politics/us-troops-mideast-pentagon-plans/index.htmlhttp://www.rudaw.net/english/opinion/08082018https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/iraqis-seize-military-base-oil-field-from-kurdish-forces-near-contested-kirkuk/2017/10/16/35853dac-b201-11e7-9b93-b97043e57a22_story.html?utm_term=.9829f651e10fhttps://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/05/syrian-forces-pound-rebel-targets-northwest-syria-190526184701969.htmlhttps://twitter.com/ACLEDINFOhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/acleddata/https://www.acleddata.com/cookies-policy/



Jazeera, 26 May 2019). This has been the mostintense con�ict between the regime and rebel forces inSyria since summer 2018.

In Yemen last week, clashes continued in Ad Daligovernorate, with Houthi forces managing to re-takecontrol of several areas, including positions in thedistricts of Qaatabah and Azariq. Meanwhile, lessintense �ghting continued in Al Bayda governorate andareas of the northern Sadah governorate. In the latter,anti-Houthi forces reported minor territorial gains inHashwah district. Further clashes continued betweenanti-Houthi forces and Houthi �ghters in Taizgovernorate, with most of the �ghting taking placewest of Taiz city. Airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalitionwere reported throughout the northern region andresulted in a number of reported civilian fatalities. Onehigh-pro�le strike on a gas station in Mawiyah district,northeast of Taizz, reportedly killed eight civilians.

Along the northern border, Houthi forces �red ballisticmissiles and explosive-laden drones at multiple targetsin Saudi Arabia throughout the week, includingmissiles that were reportedly shot down as far as Taifcity. Drones were reportedly intercepted three days in arow as they attacked the Najran regional airport.



https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/05/syrian-forces-pound-rebel-targets-northwest-syria-190526184701969.htmlhttps://twitter.com/ACLEDINFOhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/acleddata/https://www.acleddata.com/cookies-policy/



28/05/2019

Analysis, Middle East, Regional Overviews

© 2019 Armed Con�ict Location & Event Data Project(ACLED). All rights reserved.

Tom HartTom Hart is a Middle East ResearchManager with the Armed Con�ictLocation & Event Data Project(ACLED), and a part-time brewer andgenealogist. He received his BA inInternational History from CarletonUniversity in Ottawa, where he

focused on colonial relationships, interculturalinteraction, and geocultural perspectives. Mr. Hart iscurrently based out of Ottawa, Canada, and is �uentin English and French.

Lauren BlaxterLauren Blaxter is the Middle EastAssistant Research Manager atACLED. She has been responsiblefor coding Israel, Palestine, Lebanonand Jordan since May 2017. Ms.Blaxter holds a BA in Human Rights,a Graduate Diploma in Law, and a

LLM in International Criminal Law. Her work focuseson law and forensics in armed con�ict.

Tagged on:Iran Iraq Israel Palestine Saudi

Arabia Syria Yemen

Tom Hart and Lauren Blaxter



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