Amos Harel 08/02/2010

Amos Harel, (Haaretz)

"Everything that is happening far from Israel has immediate implications closer to home. The Iranian crisis helped contribute to the threats exchanged by Israel and Syria last week. The person to last comment on this was the U.S. national security adviser, James Jones, who warned that Iran may respond to further sanctions with an attack on Israel, vis Hezbollah and Hamas.

The most important link in the radical axis, which Jones avoided mentioning, is Syria. Damascus' involvement in such a confrontation would transform it into a regional clash. Syrian President Bashar Assad has warned that his country would stand with Lebanon, "in case of Israeli aggression against it." Such concerns apparently contributed to the comments by Defense Minister Ehud Barak on the need for an agreement between Israel and Syria to prevent war. The Syrians, whose actions regarding Hezbollah include goading Israel, responded with acerbic rhetoric. Fuel was added to the fire by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who made an unnecessary threat regarding the fall of the Assad regime. The United States, which is trying to cool tempers in the region, is now preparing to send an ambassador to Damascus. Still, it's doubtful whether Washington fully realizes the size of the danger."

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