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atmosphere · 17 februari 2019, 18:57

Is Iran Really a Threat to Israel From Syria?
Nobody is asking whether Iran really has an interest in turning Syria into a base for attacking Israel, or in embroiling Lebanon in another round of violence. A new war would seriously undermine the rebuilding of Israel's enemies to the north

The defense minister is demanding that the defense budget be increased by 4.8 billion shekels ($1.4 billion) and has cited the consolidation of Iran’s presence in Syria as one of his reasons. The flaccid public debate over this demand reflects the Israeli public’s characteristic retreat from its obligation to debate the principles of defense policy and how it is implemented. This obligation stems from the principle that the army is subordinate to the collective will of the civilian community.

For now, let’s ignore the question (which isn’t being asked) of what military plan Avigdor Lieberman is proposing in order to cope with the new Iranian threat, and for which he is seeking this extra funding. Before we get to that, we ought to ask a more fundamental question: Has Israel’s security situation really been worsened by the Iranian deployment? I don’t have a definitive answer to that; my criticism focuses on the fact that there hasn’t been any discussion of this question, or of the steps required to address it.

In Israel’s public debate, which is nourished primarily by advocates of military thinking, the existence of the “Iranian threat” needs no proof. Therefore, Iran’s presence in a region close to Israel is also seen as a self-evident threat. In the face of this gut instinct, there has been no critical discussion of several questions.

The first is whether Israel doesn’t have a clear interest in Syria not disintegrating, since if it did disintegrate, militias would operate from its territory without any political responsibility to exercise a restraining influence. An Iranian presence, especially along the border with Israel, would likely contribute to stabilizing a responsible sovereign authority in Syria rather than undermining it.

https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.pre...yria-1.5627072

17 februari 2019, 18:57	#1663
atmosphere Perm. Vertegenwoordiger VN Geregistreerd: 24 januari 2009 Berichten: 19.764	Is Iran Really a Threat to Israel From Syria? Nobody is asking whether Iran really has an interest in turning Syria into a base for attacking Israel, or in embroiling Lebanon in another round of violence. A new war would seriously undermine the rebuilding of Israel's enemies to the north The defense minister is demanding that the defense budget be increased by 4.8 billion shekels ($1.4 billion) and has cited the consolidation of Iran’s presence in Syria as one of his reasons. The flaccid public debate over this demand reflects the Israeli public’s characteristic retreat from its obligation to debate the principles of defense policy and how it is implemented. This obligation stems from the principle that the army is subordinate to the collective will of the civilian community. For now, let’s ignore the question (which isn’t being asked) of what military plan Avigdor Lieberman is proposing in order to cope with the new Iranian threat, and for which he is seeking this extra funding. Before we get to that, we ought to ask a more fundamental question: Has Israel’s security situation really been worsened by the Iranian deployment? I don’t have a definitive answer to that; my criticism focuses on the fact that there hasn’t been any discussion of this question, or of the steps required to address it. In Israel’s public debate, which is nourished primarily by advocates of military thinking, the existence of the “Iranian threat” needs no proof. Therefore, Iran’s presence in a region close to Israel is also seen as a self-evident threat. In the face of this gut instinct, there has been no critical discussion of several questions. The first is whether Israel doesn’t have a clear interest in Syria not disintegrating, since if it did disintegrate, militias would operate from its territory without any political responsibility to exercise a restraining influence. An Iranian presence, especially along the border with Israel, would likely contribute to stabilizing a responsible sovereign authority in Syria rather than undermining it. https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.pre...yria-1.5627072 __________________ “It's only terrorism if they do it to us. When we do much worse to them, it's not terrorism.”