The brutal Hamas attacks targeting mostly Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023, sent the already volatile Middle East spiraling out of control and turned what has historically been a localized conflict between Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and militant factions based in the Gaza Strip into a broader regional conflict between Israel and its western allies, and Iranian proxy groups operating in multiple countries, most notably Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and Iranian-backed proxy groups in Iraq. Hoping to send a message to Tehran, and perhaps even significantly blunt Iran’s continued support for various militant groups fighting against the IDF, Israel carried out a high-profile and deeply controversial airstrike on Iran’s embassy compound in Damascus, Syria, destroying a consulate annex building and killing Quds Force Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, along with multiple high ranking members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and a few civilians, totaling 16 dead all together.