Iraqi Islamic Resistance
© AFP 2023 / HAIDAR MOHAMMED ALIA member of the Iraqi Islamic Resistance
Israel has faced a series of unrelenting missile and drone attacks from militias operating across the Middle East through the course of the war in Gaza. While most of the projectiles have been shot down by the country's powerful air defenses, some have managed to make it through. The city of Eilat has become one of the top targets.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq announced Sunday that it had attacked a "vital target" in the strategic Israeli port city of Eilat using a drone, reaffirming "its commitment to continue pounding the enemy's strongholds."

The umbrella militia group, also known for its long-running campaign of rocket and drone attacks against US military bases in Iraq and Syria, did not elaborate on the nature of Sunday's attack, or what "vital target" it was aiming at. A day earlier, the same group announced a drone attack on oil refineries in the northern Israeli port city of Haifa.

The Times of Israel confirmed Sunday afternoon that air intrusion sirens had gone off in Eilat and the surrounding area. Later in the day, the Israel Defense Forces said the sirens were a false alarm.

Situated on Israel's southeastern coast and acting as the country's gateway to the Red Sea, Eilat has come under repeated attack over the past six months both by Iraqi militias and Yemen's Houthis, with the latter recently using a mysterious "improved missile" to pierce Israel's powerful air defenses.

On Monday, Eilat naval base took damage from a drone launched by the Iraqi Islamic Resistance, with the IDF confirming that was able to identify a "suspicious aerial target," but proving unable to intercept it before it impacted "in the Eilat Bay area," causing minor damage to a hanger and causing no injuries.

Eilat Mayor Eli Lankri sent a letter to Prime Minister Netanyahu on Wednesday expressing his concerns about the deteriorating security situation in the city and saying "there must not be an additional threat to Eilat."

With Israel's ability to ship cargoes through the Red Sea paralyzed by a Houthi maritime blockade, Eilat's port has suffered an 80 percent drop in revenues, prompting the administration to lay off half of the port's staff last month.
Iraqi and Yemeni militias have vowed to continue targeting Israel until the IDF's campaign in Gaza is brought to a halt.