Benjamin Netanyahu thought he was clear enough. “I spoke at length with President Putin the strategic importance of Iran’s efforts to establish a permanent presence in Syria. I said that for Israel, this is unacceptable,” — said the Prime Minister of Israel after talking with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin.
It was on 9 March. The impression that the Russian President understood his message, Netanyahu said.
Apparently not. A week later, between Israel and Syria was the largest military incident since the beginning of the Syrian civil war. Israeli aircraft attacked several targets in Syria for the first time the army of the dictator Bashar al-Assad struck back. Government forces fired anti-aircraft missiles, Russian-made s-200. The rocket took off much later than the withdrawal of Israeli aircraft.
What targets hit by Israel, remains an open question
The Israeli Arrow anti-aircraft missile shot down 2 Syrian missile because of the threat of falling into Israeli territory. “She was like the rocket of a class “earth-earth”. We could not allow her to endanger our cities,” — said the representative of the Israeli military. It was the first time the Israeli army used a missile Arrow 2 in an emergency situation. The explosion in the collision of Arrow 2 with the C-200, could be heard in many parts of Israel and the West Bank of the Jordan river.
Incidents in the night of Friday, extraordinary for a number of reasons. Because of its anti-aircraft missiles, Israel was forced to publicly declare a military operation in Syria. In General, the government’s policy is to not comment, and keep friends and enemies in the dark. What goals have hit Israel, the army says.
According to the Syrian army, the Israelites got on targets near Palmyra. Confirmation from independent parties is not followed. For the first time, Israel struck at a target that is located hundreds of miles from its borders. Earlier air strikes were deposited against buildings and convoys in Damascus and the surrounding area.
The attack near the Russian soldiers
Probably, the target of the attack was a military airfield T4 near Palmyra. After Israel weeks before his blows destroyed the supply of arms at a military airfield in Mezze in Damascus, Iran probably could leave for the airport in the desert to supply missiles to ally forces of “Hezbollah”, believing that Israel would not attack the airport, located in the heart of the country. According to Ron Bin-Yishai, the famous Israeli military expert, the blow was aimed at the delivery of missiles Scud-D with a range of 700 km.
After the air strike in Syria, Russia first summoned the Israeli Ambassador. On Friday in Moscow the foreign Ministry about the incident and asked questions of Gary Coreno: “we Have a special communication channel, and we want to make this channel more effective, and there was no confusion about who does what,” said the Deputy Minister of foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Mikhail Bogdanov. As writes the Internet portal Gazeta. EN citing unnamed sources, Israel and Russia have agreed that the Israeli air force could destroy on Syrian territory those objects that pose a threat to Israel.
Apparently, so the Kremlin was so outraged by the actions of Israel, as in Palmyra are Russian soldiers.
Moscow will not be able to prevent future Israeli strikes
The Damascus regime felt a great force due to the recent escalation. “Syrian retaliation, and call the Israeli Ambassador in Russia change “rules of game”, — said the representative of Syria to the UN Bashar al-Jaafari. The Russian news Agency Interfax quoted Assad: “They (Russia — approx. ed.) could play such a role that Israel in the future will no longer be able to attack Syria.”
However, Moscow will not be able to prevent future attacks. Israeli intelligence agencies increasingly see in Syria a bridgehead for Iran and Hezbollah. They fear that the allies of Tehran will be able to use the Golan heights to there in the next war to launch missiles against Israel.
Russia currently does not want and is unable to stop the armament of “Hezbollah” in Syria.
