(Ynet News) Ron Ben Yishai - While the Syrian civil war is winding down, fighting will not conclude in 2018. The military image on the ground is nevertheless coming into sharper focus. Russia, Iran and their proxies have succeeded in reinstating Bashar Assad, who butchered his own people across what's left of Syria. Iranian entrenchment in Syria will significantly increase the threat posed to Israel by Lebanon and also create a serious threat to aerial and maritime traffic both to and from Israel and its offshore gas rigs. In other words, the country's economic well-being and energy independence are at stake here. Commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force Qasem Soleimani intends for the Iranian bases in Syria to be close enough to the Israeli border to enable forces to reach the Golan Heights boundary within a single night in order to steal across it and raid Israeli communities. Journalist Ron Ben-Yishai won the Israel Prize for 2018.
2018-03-05 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive