BICOM

Israel’s Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman has declared that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has won the Syrian Civil War.

Speaking to Walla News Lieberman said Assad has emerged victorious and reflected on the al-Assad’s alliance that includes Russia, Iran and Hezbollah.

He also expressed his hope that “the United States will be more active in the Syrian arena and the Middle East in general… The more the United States will be active, the better it will be for the State of Israel”.

Lieberman added: “I see a long international queue lining up to woo Assad, including Western nations, including moderate Sunnis. Suddenly everyone wants to get close to Assad. This is unprecedented.”

The interview reflects the Israeli security establishment’s growing concern about an alliance between Iran and Hezbollah in Syria positioning itself on Israel’s border. Earlier this week, Lieberman told a ceremony for IDF officers that a future conflict with Iran’s proxies would be of an “entirely different character” to other conflicts and that Israel will not have “the luxury of conducting a long war. Unfortunately, we live in a reality in the new Middle East, which is far worse than the old Middle East. And in this new, terrible reality we have yet to face the difficult tests.”

To face these challenges, Lieberman said that “if there is a crossing of a red line, the other side must know in advance that it is going to pay the heaviest price”.