“Israel has four problems: Iran, Iran, Iran, and hypocrisy,” so says Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman. “What we see in the international arena is a surreal spectacle where those same countries that many years ago supported the Munich and and Molotov-Ribbentrop agreements continue to bury their heads in the sand and ignore reality of Iran, which is trying to destabilize the entire Middle East, Yemen, Iraq,” he claimed in a recent speech.
Iran, clearly has been active in the region: The Houthi rebels in Yemen continue to receive arms and ammunition from Iran, including advance ballistic missiles which they routinely launch into Saudi Arabia; In Iraq, “Tehran’s military help is not a secret anymore. You can find General Soleimani’s pictures in Iraq everywhere,” said an official close to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. In Syria, Iran’s activity continues unabated as they work to establish their presence at several military bases. In addition, reports are that Iran is currently building a factory in northwestern Syria to produce long-range missiles. Indeed, it seems that Iran is becoming bolder and bolder in their work within Syria.
This past weekend, Israel reportedly struck a Syrian airbase stocked with “missiles,” most likely provided by Iran. This air raid reportedy destroyed 200 missiles and killed several. Moreover, the explosions were so fierce, it registered a 2.6 on the Richter scale. (A video of the explosions can also be found on The Warzone’s website here.) Tensions between Iran and Israel are clearly escalating. After Prime Minister Netanyahu’s speech earlier this week, I wouldn’t be surprised if Israel increased its actions in Syria very soon. The Syrian powder-keg could erupt all too soon.
Bradley T. Carlson 