- Iran-backed groups form a land bridge

across the Middle East and connect in an alliance

that Iran calls the Axis of Resistance.

Its focus, to oppose the West.

They can both transport equipment and personnel,

but they can also use these positions to attack US interests

or threaten Israel closer to its borders.

The alliance has been brought into focus

amid the Hamas-Israel War

as the groups are mobilizing on multiple fronts.

- [Cameraperson] Whoa.

- At the same time.

So here's how Iran built out the network

across the Middle East

and what it means for the US and Israel.

So to show you

where Iran's so-called Axis of Resistance works

in the Middle East, we have Iran over here,

and then, of course, Hamas in Gaza over here

on the Mediterranean.

There's another group that Iran supports

in Gaza called the Palestinian Islamic Jihad,

which is actually a closer ally of Iran ideologically,

but also working out of Gaza here and also in the West Bank.

Iran's most important militia ally

is Hezbollah here in Lebanon.

Aside from that,

they also have Syria's president, Bashar al-Assad, here,

and various militant groups in Iraq.

And then, finally, they also have an alliance

with the Houthis in Yemen down here south.

These connections allow Iran

to expand its influence in the Middle East

and make it easier for the country

to transport military equipment, personnel,

and weapons through the region.

One of Iran's aims in the Middle East

is to always keep the fight or the military fight

as far away from its own borders as possible,

and the presence of these military allies

and the land bridge kinda helps it do that.

To understand why Iran has this belt of influence

in the region, we need to go back a few decades.

Following the Iranian Revolution in 1979,

Tehran has sought to exert military, cultural,

and ideological dominance across the Middle East.

That led to the creation of the Quds Force,

a branch of the Iranian military,

which was later led by Qassem Soleimani.

Soleimani became famous in the West

over the past decade or so,

because Iran decided to elevate his profile

as the mastermind,

the architect behind this modern iteration

of the Axis of Resistance.

(Qassem speaking foreign language)

- [Sune] Later, Soleimani was killed

in a drone strike ordered by the US.

- Soleimani was plotting imminent and sinister attacks

on American diplomats and military personnel,

but we caught him in the act and terminated him.

- The strike was aimed at weakening Iran's ability

to threaten American interests

in Iraq and across the region.

But that goal hasn't materialized.

Iran has continued to supply groups such as Hamas

with weapons and training.

On October 7th,

Hamas, designated a terror organization by the US,

launched a broad assault on Israel, killing 1,200.

Iranian supreme leader, Ali Khamenei,

said immediately after the attack

that Iran did not have a hand in planning it,

but supported it.

(suspenseful music)

To try and curb Iran's influence,

the US works with allied countries

to have a presence of bases and troops

across the Middle East.

Of course, Israel here and Saudi Arabia here

as its two sort of main and closest allies

against Iranian influence.

Jordan has also for very long been a very firm US ally,

and the US also has partners in the Gulf.

The US also has a presence in some of the countries

where it's competing for influence with Iran,

for example, in Iraq, of course,

and the US also still has a military presence

in Northern Syria where it's been allied for many years

with Kurdish forces in the fight against Islamic state,

but now, also maintains a military presence

to sort of counter this Iranian land bridge

or the threat from Iran to US interests and allies.

Tehran-backed groups operating in this region

have been particularly active since October 7th.

So let's remove all of these

and take a look at what's been happening.

On October 7th, Hamas attacked Israel

here on the border with Gaza.

Israel responded with a major military offensive on Gaza.

But Iran's allies have also responded

to this Israeli attack from different sides.

Most importantly, the Hezbollah militia

in the northern part with Israel

has engaged in skirmishes with Israeli soldiers.

Iranian militias in Syria have also gotten closer

to the border where they have engaged in skirmishes.

Down here in Yemen, the Iranian allied Houthi rebels

have both fired rockets at Southern Israel,

but also captured a vessel in the Red Sea.

The Houthis also launched drones and missiles

to other commercial vessels in the area.

That led to a US-led multinational task force stepping in

to try and protect one

of the world's most vital shipping lanes.

And elsewhere, Iranian-backed militias

in Iraq and Syria conducted nearly 100 rocket attacks

against US forces over the past two months according

to the Pentagon.

Even though there's been these types of attacks

with increased frequency over the past decade or so,

in this context, of course, they compound pressure on Israel

and help sort of pressure Israel in this context

where they're fighting Hamas and Gaza.

(suspenseful music)

Although Iran's Axis of Resistance

has claimed attacks on multiple fronts

amid the Hamas-Israel War,

Middle East analysts believe a wider regional conflict

is unlikely for now.

Even though other parts of this alliance

have distanced themselves from the October 7th attacks,

the fact that there was a big attack on Israel

has given the alliance a bit of momentum,

but also put a little bit of pressure, to be honest,

on some of the other militant groups,

both to strike a bit of Israel

and to come to the defense of the Palestinians

who are now on the severe airstrikes

and the ground invasion in Gaza.

So far, groups in the alliance

have been sticking to calculated and strategic strikes

rather than moves that could risk a full blown conflict

with Israel and its allies.

(suspenseful music)