Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Maj. Gen. Kamil Abu-Rukon appealed to residents of the Gaza Strip through his Arabic-language “Al-Munaseq” Facebook page Aug. 26, explaining why Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had ordered Israeli fuel supplies to the enclave cut by half. “Hostile warmongers, near and far, are dragging you down the path of violence and a loss of stability,” he warned. Abu-Rukon then listed the names of those seeking to foment war when it comes to Gaza: the Islamic Jihad and Iran. He did not name Hamas, but two photos were appended to the post — one showing Islamic Jihad leader Ziyad al-Nakhaleh embracing the head of the Iranian Supreme Security Council, Rear Adm. Ali Shamkhani, at a Dec. 30, 2018 meeting in Tehran. The other showed Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar covering his eyes with his hands.

The message was clear: The Islamic Jihad is acting on Iranian orders while Hamas is closing its eyes and allowing these “hostile elements” to drag Gaza into war. “Apparently, the factions in Gaza favor the interests of Iran over their own citizens,” Abu-Rukon added.

Israel’s decision to slash the amount of fuel it allows into the enclave followed the Aug. 25 firing of three rockets toward the Gaza border town of Sderot during the Live Sderot concert that drew a crowd of thousands. The blaring of sirens warning of incoming rockets set off panic among the audience that had come to celebrate the last musical event of the summer, with people scattering every which way to seek shelter. Many simply lay flat on the grass, covering their heads with their hands. Although Sderot is a frequent target of Gaza rocket fire, it has never experienced such an attack during a mass public gathering.

Israel is holding the Islamic Jihad responsible for the rocket attack, which was launched in retaliation for recent activity by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) against Iranian targets, accusing the Islamic Jihad of trying to fuel further Israel’s already highly charged northern front. On the night of Aug. 24, Israeli fighter jets struck Iranian targets in Syria. Israel generally does not admit or deny its cross-border military strikes in the north, but in an unusual move, the IDF admitted attacking a unit of Al-Quds, an arm of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in Syria that the IDF accused of planning “killer drone attacks” on Israel. At the same time, two drones crashed into Beirut’s predominantly Shiite Dahiyeh neighborhood. Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah claimed they were explosives-laden Israeli drones targeting his organization, which, like the Islamic Jihad, enjoys Iranian patronage.