Israel/Palestine
Related: About this forumAnalysis: With Syria crumbling, Israel's security situation has never been better
Deputy IDF Chief of Staff Maj.-Gen. Yair Golan said Tuesday that Israel's security situation on the northern border has improved as a result of the Syrian civil war, which has served to drain the blood of Hezbollah.
On the surface, these appear to be trivial remarks, which have been repeated by military experts and analysts over the past several years. But to hear them from such a senior military authority is refreshingly new.
As far as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minsiter Moshe Ya'alon are concerned, these comments verge on heresy. If our security situation has improved, does the IDF really need additions to its budget? And what about the approach taken by Netanyahu, who continues to warn, on every possible occasion, of the threat of Iran, Hezbollah, and Islamic State?
Indeed, Israel's strategic situation has never been better. Arab states that were once armed to the teeth, such as Libya and Iraq, have fallen apart. Egypt is a military and intelligence ally of Israel in its fight against Hamas the Sinai terror threat.
http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Analysis-With-Syria-crumbling-Israels-security-situation-has-never-been-better-404909
shira
(30,109 posts)....aimed at Israel. If Hezbollah falls and the Lebanese army fails to keep ISIS or other extremists from using those rockets, then it's actually worse than the situation with Hezbollah.
It's always a pleasure when we can agree. I do see the idea that the fall of the Assad regime is a good thing for Israel from time to time in Israeli media sources, but I do agree that that idea is quite incorrect. The Lebanese army won't last long by itself, and the Saudis are jerking its chain about loyalty oaths and guaranteeing weapons won't get into the wrong hands as it is. It is the veriest mess i think I have ever seen.
azurnoir
(45,850 posts)can't have that stuff being bandied about
bemildred
(90,061 posts)I am mostly taken with how wrong it is, that view, they cling to their petty resentments, when they may well soon regret that loss of the Assad regime, warts and all.