(Jerusalem Post) Herb Keinon - The U.S. killing of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is an "impressive" intelligence and operational feat, but for Israel, Iran - not ISIS - is the main threat in the Middle East, Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Amos Yadlin, former head of IDF Military Intelligence and currently director of the Institute for National Security Studies, said Sunday. "For us Israelis, the threat from ISIS is secondary. We would like to see the U.S. act in a similar way against [Iranian Quds force commander Qassem] Soleimani, and [Hizbullah head Hassan] Nasrallah." ISIS does not have a nuclear program, ballistic missiles, or a project to develop precision weapons, Yadlin said. He added that while the U.S. decision to withdraw its troops from Syria will not immediately or directly harm Israel - because of Israel's capacity to deal with Iran - the increase in Iran's self-confidence and its understanding that the U.S. has been deterred could bring an Iranian-Israeli confrontation closer.
2019-10-28 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive