One Battle or Three? - By Daymond Duck -
Is the Psalm 83 Battle, the destruction of Damascus in one night, and the Battle of Gog and Magog one battle or three (Psa. 83; Isa. 17; Jer. 49:23-27; Ezek. 38-39)? Are they one war or three wars? Well, that depends upon which prophecy teacher you ask.
It is difficult to get a clear answer because there are differences of opinion on these wars.
Some prophecy teachers believe there will be a Psa. 83 War, but others don't.
Some prophecy teachers believe the Battle of Gog and Magog will take place before the Rapture, but others believe it will take place after the Rapture.
Some prophecy teachers believe the Battle of Gog and Magog will take place before the Tribulation Period, but others believe it will start at or near the middle of the Tribulation Period and continue until the Battle of Armageddon at the end of the Tribulation Period.
So, there are differences of opinion on these events.
But regardless of these differences of opinion, there are at least two things that most of the best prophecy teachers agree on: One, in that day (at the time of the end), Damascus, Syria will be destroyed in one night; and two, there will be a Battle of Gog and Magog in the latter years and latter days.
When I am talking about a potential Psa. 83 War, the destruction of Damascus and the Battle of Gog and Magog, I usually treat them as three different battles.
When asked about the sequence of these battles, I usually tell people it is just my opinion that they will happen at or about the same time.
If there is a Psa. 83 War (and I won't argue about it, but I tend to agree with those that teach it), I believe it will be before the Battle of Gog and Magog.
But I hasten to tell people that I believe a war between Israel and her neighbors could trigger a war between Israel and Syria. And either one of these wars could trigger the Battle of Gog and Magog.
War could break out as one battle on one front and wind up being several battles on several fronts. One event could also follow another by only a matter of days.
Having said that, on Oct. 10, 2017, Israel's Defense Minister, Avigdor Lieberman, told a group of listeners that "the lines between countries and regions are rapidly disappearing."
He said, "The next outbreak of violence would require the mobilization of the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) on multiple fronts."
Lebanon and Hezbollah are now essentially one entity, not two. Both are dominated by a third power called Iran. A war with one could be a war with all three.
Russia and Iran dominate Syria. Both have bases, troops and weapons in Syria. A war with Syria could turn into a war with Russia and Iran.
Iraq is dominated by the Shiite government of Iran.
Hamas, a terrorist group in Gaza, is building a base in Lebanon with Hezbollah support.
The Fatah-run PA government in Gaza has signed a reconciliation agreement with the Hamas terrorist group in Gaza to enhance their opposition to Israel, etc.
This is the point: These groups have become so intertwined that a war with one of them is essentially a war with all of them.
This means Israel must prepare to fight all of them on several fronts, not just one of them on one front.
And that is what Israel is doing.
Israel has issued warnings to the whole world, but no one is listening.
Israel has tried diplomacy, but that has not worked.
Israel has now concluded that war is the only option and that the Jewish nation is running out of time to act.
The world may view all of this as one battle, but it could fulfill one, two or three prophecies before it is over.
About this, keep in mind the fact that Israel, the Arabs and the U.S. have formed an alliance to oppose Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons, to discuss Israel's right to exist as a Jewish nation and to explore the possibility of a Mid-East peace treaty.
This opposition to Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons may have influenced Pres. Trump's Oct. 13, 2017 decision to de-certify the JCPOA (Iranian nuclear deal).
Congress now has 60 days to act. If Congress doesn't act in 60 days, Pres. Trump will be free to act as he sees fit.
It is just possible that Iran's desire for nuclear weapons, the Arab and Israeli opposition to it, and Pres. Trump's desire for the ultimate deal (a peace treaty in the Middle East) are all coming together at the same time in history to fulfill several prophecies in rapid succession.
Prophecy Plus Ministries, Inc.
Daymond & Rachel Duck
After Syria Civil War Ends, Guns Will Be Turned on Israel - By Barney Breen-Portnoy -
Residents of Israel's Golan Heights region are on edge following the latest exchange of fire on the border with Syria.
Early Saturday morning, five rockets were launched from Syria into Israel, hitting open areas, causing no injuries or damage. This prompted an IDF strike later in the day on three Syrian artillery pieces.
"Whether errant or not, any future occurrences will force the IDF to intensify its response," the IDF said. "The IDF holds the Syrian regime responsible and won't tolerate any attempt to breach Israeli sovereignty or threaten Israeli civilians' safety."
Eli Malka -- the head of the Golan Regional Council -- told the Hebrew news site nrg, "I hope that the clear response of the IDF will stop the shooting, but we are preparing for any potential escalation."
Since the civil war in Syria erupted in 2011, Israel has largely sought to remain neutral in the bloody conflict, which has drawn in many regional players.
However, the IDF has responded with pinpoint strikes to occasional cross-border fire -- both errant and deliberate -- in the Golan Heights and has reportedly targeted a number of Hezbollah-bound weapons convoys in Syria in recent years.
Israel has also provided medical treatment to thousands of people wounded in the fighting in Syria.
According to nrg, IDF officials believe Saturday's rocket salvo was intentionally aimed at Israel and ordered by Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime.
Assad may feel that victory in the civil war is within his reach thanks to having Tehran by his side, along with Shiite militias from Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan, and 8,000 well-armed Hezbollah fighters. So maybe he considers this a good time to send Israel a defiant message.
It doesn't hurt that the same day, Iranian defense chief Mahmoud Bagheri signed a memorandum of understanding with his Syrian counterpart, Ali Ayyoub.
"These were not mortars or artillery shells, but rockets that struck our territory," an unnamed IDF Northern Command officer was quoted as saying by nrg. "The chance this was not deliberate is low.
There were no battles taking place in the area where the launch took place. This very well may have been a message from Syria. Our main concern now is that this doesn't become routine, because we've already seen this sector heating up since March."
For Malka, it did not matter whether the fire was directed at Israel on purpose or not. "A bomb is a bomb," he said.
As Assad -- aided by Russia and Iran -- has gained strength over the past year, Malka added, authorities on the Golan Heights have been preparing for an end of the relative quiet that has prevailed in the area.
"After the civil war in Syria dies out, the guns will be turned on Israel," he predicted.
Zionist Union MK Eyal Ben-Reuven, a retired IDF general whose service included a stint as deputy Northern Command chief, told nrg that Iran -- the patron of Hezbollah and other Shia militias operating in Syria -- had "an unequivocal interest in heating up the border."
"The real landlord in Syria, the Russians, cannot stop this, and the Americans are not there," he said. Therefore, he warned, there was a possibility of a "significant escalation" in the north.
For now, at least, it doesn't seem there is anybody who can stop the spread of Iran's influence in the region.
Russia may be willing to turn a blind eye to the next Israeli airstrike, but that won't torpedo Iran's plan for Syria, which includes a broad and lasting military presence.
Russia's ominous return to the Middle East - Herbert London -
Putin seeks to drive a wedge between the U.S. and Egypt
One of the most significant foreign policy events of the last 50 years is the introduction of Russian forces in the heartland of the Middle East and through this development, a restored cooperation with Egypt. Henry Kissinger noted that the Russian deployment of military forces in Syria is "unprecedented in Russian history presenting a challenge that American Middle East policy has not encountered in at least four decades."
During the presidency of Anwar Sadat, Russia was asked to leave Egypt and, more significantly, leave interests that were cultivated over several years. At that time, the Russian dream of a perpetual warm water port was undermined. Now however, Russia is ensconced in the Middle East as a tribute to the changing fortunes of world affairs.
In September, Egyptian and Russian paratroopers concluded Protectors of Friendship 2, a joint military exercise on Russian soil. The commander of the Egyptian forces, Major Gen. Nehez Abdel Wahab stressed the importance of the exercise in "maximizing mutual experiences in light of the distinguished military relations between the armed forces of both countries." This exercise is consistent with emerging military cooperation since 2015, an astonishing development considering the fact that Egypt and Russia opposed one another in Syria over the fate of Bashar Assad.
But it is now apparent Russia is a supporter of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi's government and was among the first countries to endorse his presidential bid. Cairo has obviously strengthened its ties to Moscow against the backdrop of strained ties with the Obama administration since the ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. When President Trump delivered his Riyadh speech encouraging deepening relations between the U.S. and the Sunni nations of the Middle East, Mr. el-Sissi welcomed the overture, but made it clear Egypt's foreign policy would not be dictated by others.
One dimension of this open-ended policy is that Egypt has refused to rely on the U.S. as its sole arms supplier. President Obama's refusal to provide Apache helicopters for Egypt's war fighting ability in the Sinai led directly to arms deals with Russia and China for about $3 billion.
Mr. Trump has inherited this challenge. On the one hand, he would like to offset Russian influence in the region; on the other he is keen on creating a defense condominium that can serve as a surrogate anti-terror force and as a counterweight to Iranian ambitions. There is a residual suspicion of Russia that is part of its Middle East legacy. However, the Trump administration did not enhance its position by recently cutting aid to Egypt. If anything, Mr. Trump should be restoring the confidence cavalierly squandered by his predecessor. The U.S. and Egypt have long-standing relationships and both nations are eager to maintain the friendship developed over decades. However, foreign policy is based on ephemeral conditions. "What have you done for me lately?" is a common refrain.
One of the most significant foreign policy events of the last 50 years is the introduction of Russian forces in the heartland of the Middle East and through this development, a restored cooperation with Egypt. Henry Kissinger noted that the Russian deployment of military forces in Syria is "unprecedented in Russian history presenting a challenge that American Middle East policy has not encountered in at least four decades."
During the presidency of Anwar Sadat, Russia was asked to leave Egypt and, more significantly, leave interests that were cultivated over several years. At that time, the Russian dream of a perpetual warm water port was undermined. Now however, Russia is ensconced in the Middle East as a tribute to the changing fortunes of world affairs.
In September, Egyptian and Russian paratroopers concluded Protectors of Friendship 2, a joint military exercise on Russian soil. The commander of the Egyptian forces, Major Gen. Nehez Abdel Wahab stressed the importance of the exercise in "maximizing mutual experiences in light of the distinguished military relations between the armed forces of both countries." This exercise is consistent with emerging military cooperation since 2015, an astonishing development considering the fact that Egypt and Russia opposed one another in Syria over the fate of Bashar Assad.
But it is now apparent Russia is a supporter of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi's government and was among the first countries to endorse his presidential bid. Cairo has obviously strengthened its ties to Moscow against the backdrop of strained ties with the Obama administration since the ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. When President Trump delivered his Riyadh speech encouraging deepening relations between the U.S. and the Sunni nations of the Middle East, Mr. el-Sissi welcomed the overture, but made it clear Egypt's foreign policy would not be dictated by others.
One dimension of this open-ended policy is that Egypt has refused to rely on the U.S. as its sole arms supplier. President Obama's refusal to provide Apache helicopters for Egypt's war fighting ability in the Sinai led directly to arms deals with Russia and China for about $3 billion.
Mr. Trump has inherited this challenge. On the one hand, he would like to offset Russian influence in the region; on the other he is keen on creating a defense condominium that can serve as a surrogate anti-terror force and as a counterweight to Iranian ambitions. There is a residual suspicion of Russia that is part of its Middle East legacy. However, the Trump administration did not enhance its position by recently cutting aid to Egypt. If anything, Mr. Trump should be restoring the confidence cavalierly squandered by his predecessor. The U.S. and Egypt have long-standing relationships and both nations are eager to maintain the friendship developed over decades. However, foreign policy is based on ephemeral conditions. "What have you done for me lately?" is a common refrain.
The Next Mideast Wars: Where Will the US Stand? - By Patrick Buchanan -
"The Kurds have no friends but the mountains," is an old lament. Last week, it must have been very much on Kurdish minds.
As their U.S. allies watched, the Kurdish peshmerga fighters were run out of Kirkuk and all the territory they had captured fighting ISIS alongside the Americans. The Iraqi army that ran them out was trained and armed by the United States.
The U.S. had warned the Kurds against holding the referendum on independence on Sept. 25, which carried with 92 percent. Iran and Turkey had warned against an independent Kurdistan that could be a magnet for Kurdish minorities in their own countries.
But the Iraqi Kurds went ahead. Now they have lost Kirkuk and its oil, and their dream of independence is all but dead.
More troubling for America is the new reality revealed by the rout of the peshmerga. Iraq, which George W. Bush and the neocons were going to fashion into a pro-Western democracy and American ally, appears to be as close to Iran as it is to the United States.
After 4,500 U.S. dead, scores of thousands wounded and a trillion dollars sunk, our 15-year war in Iraq could end with a Shiite-dominated Baghdad aligned with Tehran.
With that grim prospect in mind, Secretary Rex Tillerson said Sunday, "Iranian militias that are in Iraq, now that the fight against ... ISIS is coming to a close ... need to go home. Any foreign fighters in Iraq need to go home."
Tillerson meant Iran's Quds Force in Iraq should go home, and the Shiite militia in Iraq should be conscripted into the army.
But what if the Baghdad regime of Haider al-Abadi does not agree? What if the Quds Force does not go home to Iran and the Shiite militias that helped retake Kirkuk refuse to enlist in the Iraqi army?
Who then enforces Tillerson's demands?
Consider what is happening in Syria.
The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, largely Kurdish, just annihilated ISIS in Raqqa and drove 60 miles to seize Syria's largest oil field, al-Omar, from ISIS. The race is now on between the SDF and Bashar Assad's army to secure the border with Iraq.
Bottom line: The U.S. goal of crushing the ISIS caliphate is almost attained. But if our victory in the war against ISIS leaves Iran in the catbird seat in Baghdad and Damascus, and its corridor from Tehran to Baghdad, Damascus and Beirut secure, is that really a victory?
Do we accept that outcome, pack up and go home? Or do we leave our forces in Syria and Iraq and defy any demand from Assad to vacate his country?
Sunday's editorial in the Washington Post, "The Next Mideast Wars," raises the crucial questions now before us.
Would President Trump be willing to fight a new war to keep Iran from consolidating its position in Iraq and Syria? Would the American people support such a war with U.S. troops?
Would Congress, apparently clueless to the presence of 800 U.S. troops in Niger, authorize a new U.S. war in Syria or Iraq?
If Trump and his generals felt our vital interests could not allow Syria and Iraq to drift into the orbit of Iran, where would we find allies for such a fight?
If we rely on the Kurds in Syria, we lose NATO ally Turkey, which regards Syria's Kurds as collaborators of the PKK in Turkey, which even the U.S. designates a terrorist organization.
The decision as to whether this country should engage in new post-ISIS wars in the Mideast, however, may be taken out of our hands.
Saturday, Israel launched new air strikes against gun positions in Syria in retaliation for shells fired into the Golan Heights.
Damascus claims that Israel's "terrorist" allies inside Syria fired the shells, to give the IDF an excuse to attack.
Why would Israel wish to provoke a war with Syria?
Because the Israelis see the outcome of the six-year Syrian civil war as a strategic disaster.
Hezbollah, stronger than ever, was part of Assad's victorious coalition. Iran may have secured its land corridor from Tehran to Beirut. Its presence in Syria could now be permanent.
And only one force in the region has the power to reverse the present outcome of Syria's civil war - the United States.
Bibi Netanyahu knows that if war with Syria breaks out, a clamor will arise in Congress to have the U.S. rush to Israel's aid.
Closing its Sunday editorial, the Post instructed the president:
"A failure by the United States to defend its allies or promote new political arrangements for (Syria and Iraq) will lead only to more war, the rise of new terrorist threats, and, ultimately, the necessity of more U.S. intervention."
The interventionist Post is saying: The situation is intolerable. Confront Assad and Iran now, or fight them later.
Trump is being led to the Rubicon. If he crosses, he joins Bush II in the history books.
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'Iran-led Shiite axis is Israel's biggest enemy' - Shimon Cohen - http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/237056
Middle East expert says rocket fire from Syria was accidental, believes real concern is Syria turning to significant link in axis of evil.
Prof. Moshe Maoz, an expert on Syria and Hezbollah from the Political Science Department at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, said on Sunday he believes four rockets from Syria which exploded in the Golan Heights on Saturday were accidental spillover from the Syrian civil war.
"This firing, I estimate, happened accidentally. Syria has no interest in provoking us because we will respond with force," Maoz told Arutz Sheva, though he added that "in strategic terms, the great danger is from Syria as an important link of the Shiite axis that is being led by Iran, and this is Israel's greatest enemy."
"This axis potentially includes Iraq, Lebanon-Hezbollah and Yemen. This is the danger and the Iranians may provoke us in the future, and they have already expressed this, but this firing does not seem to me to be more than accidental fire that happens from time to time," he continued.
Referring to Iran, Prof. Maoz said, "In their view, we are provoking them and their allies the Syrians, and we are bombing military positions and cannons. The Iranians feel, and have expressed themselves in this way, that Israel cannot do whatever it wants in the skies of their Syrian allies. Their patience will expire and the question is how they will act, and this is where a third factor comes in to play, and that is the Russians who control the skies of Syria. They have agreements and disagreements with the Iranians and the question is what they will do, mainly because they have the means to prevent Israeli flights and bombings. There appears to be an understanding between the Russians and us, and they allow us to hit Hezbollah's weapons convoys, but if it spreads further, it will be considered a blow to the Russian honor."
"Beyond that, they have modern means to prevent our airstrikes," noted Maoz. "They have S-400 systems, beyond the S-300s they provided to the Iranians, which they can use to prevent and intercept any aircraft coming from Israel. This is the most critical point, and it is no coincidence that Netanyahu has been to Russia six or seven times in recent months. Moreover, the Americans are not helping, Trump has given up on Syria and Russia is the potential ruler in this region. We're in a pretty delicate state of affairs."
"The Russians will not forcefully prevent the Iranian presence in the region, it is not in their interest, and they do not want to do so," he opined, adding, "The question is the level of coordination between them. That's a very critical question."
Regarding the Israeli response to the firing from Syria, Maoz said, "This is Syrian sovereignty and we are attacking another country, but the Syrians will not do anything unusual without Iranian and Russian support. The question is what they decide to do in consultation with them. We should perhaps consider whether we should reduce the retaliation. It is right to punish the Syrians for what is happening, but we do not have to violate Syrian sovereignty so crudely. This is a very delicate question."
As for the importance that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu places on the relationship with Russia, which openly backs Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, Maoz said, "There are differing opinions on this. Some would say this is the correct thing to do, because we have to work with 'the familiar Satan', which is Bashar who is pragmatic and corrupt and can be bribed, and he is a secular who protects the region from radical Islam. I, as a Jew, am outraged that Israel agrees to the continued rule of Bashar, who has murdered half a million Syrians and caused 11 million refugees, beyond the strategic point of view that he is part of this dangerous axis. Therefore, there is a dilemma here but it's already too late to change reality."
US bombers reportedly preparing for high alert over NKorea
The U.S. Air Force is shooting down reports it has been preparing to place its fleet of nuclear-armed B-52 bombers on 24-hour alert for the first time since 1991 amid escalating tensions with North Korea.
Defense officials denied to Fox News that bombers were ordered to go on round-the-clock alert, first reported by Defense One.
Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, home of the 2d Bomb Wing and Air Force Global Strike Command, which manages the service’s nuclear services, is being renovated, Defense One reported, so that B-52s would be ready to “take off at a moment’s notice.”
But an official told Fox News they are merely renovating the kitchen and sleeping quarters at the facility, not prepping for 24-hour alert status.
Gen. Goldfein said that by prepping its fleet of B-52 bombers to remain on 24-hour alert, the Air Force is preparing "for the reality of the global situation we find ourselves in." (U.S. Air Force)
The B-52, which can fly up to about 50,000 feet and at subsonic speeds, has the ability to release a variety of weapons, including cluster bombs, gravity bombs and precision guided missiles.
The long-range bomber can also unleash both nuclear and precision-guided conventional ordnance.
The 24-hour alert status for B-52s ended in 1991, in the waning days of the Cold War.
Air Force could recall up to 1,000 retired pilots after Trump order
The Air Force could recall up to 1,000 retired pilots after President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at addressing what the Pentagon has described as an "acute shortage of pilots."
The order, which Trump signed Friday, amends an emergency declaration signed by George W. Bush after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.
Under current law, the Air Force is limited to recalling just 25 pilots. The order signed by Trump temporarily removes that cap for all branches of the military.
A Pentagon spokesman, Navy Cmdr. Gary Ross, said in a statement that the Air Force is currently "short approximately 1,500 pilots of its requirements."
"We anticipate that the Secretary of Defense will delegate the authority to the Secretary of the Air Force to recall up to 1,000 retired pilots for up to 3 years," Ross said. "The pilot supply shortage is a national level challenge that could have adverse effects on all aspects of both the government and commercial aviation sectors for years to come."
In August, Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson confirmed that the service was short 1,555 pilots of its requirements, including 1,211 fighter pilots.
�The Air Force does not currently intend to recall retired pilots to address the pilot shortage. We appreciate the authorities and flexibility delegated to us,� Ann Stefanek, an Air Force spokeswoman, told Fox News.
At the time, Wilson announced the Air Force was increasing incentive pay to officers and enlisted crew members for the first time in 18 years.
The service also expanded its aviation bonus program to apply to include pilots who were out of contract.
Fox News' Lucas Tomlinson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Trump on North Korean nuclear threat, Iran nuclear deal
The president discusses foreign policy challenges and his immigration agenda on 'Hannity.'
North Korea on Thursday mocked President Trump as the �rabid man in the White House� and threatened to attack the United States with an �immense volley of nuclear fire," the menacing messages coming just days after Pyongyang warned other countries to avoid an alliance with America.
The rogue regime said the U.S. should expect an �unimaginable strike at an unimaginable time,� according to a statement released by the state-run Korean Central News Agency. The statement was oddly juxtaposed with photos of Kim Jong Un and his mysterious wife, Ri Jol Ju, grinning at workers in a shoe factory, news.com.au reported.
�The U.S. is running amok by introducing under our nose the targets we have set as primary ones. The U.S. should expect that it would face unimaginable strike at an unimaginable time,� the statement said. �From the very day of the birth of the DPRK, its people have experienced sanctions and pressure, a war without gunfire. The US is different from the DPRK. Historically, it is the chieftain persistently threatening the DPRK.�
The North Korean statement added: �The rabid man in the White House�will first face the immense volley of nuclear fire if he hopes to settle [this] confrontation with nukes.�
The photos released by KCNA showed Kim with other unidentified Korean officials at Ryuwon Footwear Factory. In one picture the North Korean despot is holding a pink children�s sneaker. His wife isn�t photographed often, even dropping out of the public eye for several consecutive months earlier this year -- until she reappeared in July to celebrate the country�s successful intercontinental ballistic missile test. Several reports indicated she was pregnant with the leader�s third child, according to South Korea�s Yonhap News Agency.
The recent threat comes as Trump, who often calls Kim �little rocket man,� is set to visit South Korea during his Asia trip next month. This would be the president�s first trip to the peninsula. It�s unclear if he'll make a trip to the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea, however, he's reportedly considering it.
On Monday, the Hermit Kingdom told countries to avoid aligning with the U.S. if they wanted to evade a nuclear attack on their own nations.
�The entire U.S. mainland is within our firing range," a North Korean ambassador said in prepared remarks. "And if the U.S. dares to invade our sacred territory even an inch it will not escape our severe punishment in any part of the globe."
Israel accuses Hezbollah of Golan shelling to spark war with Syria - Anna Ahronheim -
Israel has largely stayed out of the six-year Syrian civil war.
Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said Monday that the errant rocket fire from Syria over the weekend was deliberately carried out by a local Hezbollah cell instructed by the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah, and called on the Russian forces present in the region to reign in the Shi'ite terror group.
"It was not a leakage but a deliberate attack by a local cell operated by Hezbollah" he said, adding that it had been "personally instructed by Nasrallah in order to compartmentalize the Assad regime."
Speaking at the opening of a meeting of the Yisrael Beytenu faction, Liberman stressed that the five projectiles which were fired from Syria towards Israel on Saturday was not errant fire "but directed and deliberate firing carried out by Hezbollah with Assad's permission in an attempt to draw us into the Syrian conflict."
Liberman said that he hopes that all parties involved is responsible enough to prevent further escalation, and will take all necessary steps to do so.
"We call on the Assad regime, which we consider responsible for everything that happens on Syrian soil -- especially when it currently controls 90% of its territory, and the Russian forces there, to restrain Hezbollah," Liberman said, stressing that Saturday's fire was another reason why Hezbollah must leave Syria as soon as possible.
The border with Syria has been tense since the war erupted in 2011, and the IDF retaliated on Saturday by hitting three Syrian regime artillery positions after three out of five projectiles landed in open territory in Israel's northern Golan Heights, causing no damage or injuries.
Israeli officials have repeatedly voiced concerns over the growing Iranian presence on its borders and the smuggling of sophisticated weaponry to Hezbollah from Tehran to Lebanon via Syria, stressing that both are red-lines for the Jewish State.
Russia, which views Iran as a key player in resolving the crisis in Syria, has repeatedly emphasized the importance of the role that the Islamic Republic plays in the war-torn country.
While Saturday's projectiles followed other errant rockets that had struck open fields on the Golan Heights earlier last week, Channel 2 reported Saturday night that the IDF believed that they were deliberate, especially since they didn't fall close to the border like the other rockets earlier in the week, but deeper inside Israel's Golan Heights.
Following the rocket fire the IDF warned that "Even if this is spillover, this is an exceptional event and the continuation of such events will only exacerbate Israel's response."
Last week Liberman met with US Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to discuss the Jewish State's ongoing concerns regarding Iran's presence in Syria. Shoigu is reported to have told Israel that Moscow has expressed willingness to extend a 10-15 kilometer off-limits zone where Iranian and Hezbollah forces will not be allowed to enter.
Hours before Shoigu landed in Israel, Israeli fighter jets destroyed a Syrian anti-aircraft missile battery stationed some 50 kilometers east of Damascus which had fired on Israeli planes in Lebanese airspace earlier that morning.
Following the incident, Iran's military chief Maj.-Gen. Mohammad Hossein Bagheri who was in Damascus on an official visit, warned Israel against violating Syrian airspace, saying "it is not acceptable for the Zionist regime to violate Syria anytime it wants."
On Saturday, Syria and Iran signed a Memorandum of Understanding to broaden and develop military cooperation and coordination between the two armies. According to SANA, the MoU focuses on developing military cooperation in various fields, including training, the exchange of combat and field expertise, intelligence information and military technology.
The Iran-Hamas Plan to Destroy Israel - By Khaled Abu Toameh - https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/96680/iran-hamas-plan-destroy-israel/#TpFPA1j3zauCjeOb.99
In a historic reawakening, Iran is once again meddling in the internal affairs of the Palestinians. This does not bode well for the future of "reconciliation" between Hamas and Palestinian Authority's Fatah faction run by President Mahmoud Abbas.The re-emergence of Iran, as it pursues its efforts to increase its political and military presence in the region, does not bode well for the future of stability in the Middle East.
The Iranians are urging Hamas to hold on to its weapons in spite of the recent "reconciliation" agreement signed between Hamas and Fatah under the auspices of Egypt. Iran's goal in this move? For Hamas to maintain and enhance its preparation for war against Israel.
A high-level Hamas delegation headed by Saleh Arouri, deputy chairman of Hamas's "political bureau," traveled to Tehran last week to brief Iranian leaders on the "reconciliation" deal with Fatah. During the visit, Iranian leaders praised Hamas for resisting demands (by Fatah) to disarm and relinquish security control over the Gaza Strip.
"We congratulate you on your refusal to abandon your weapons, an issue that you consider as a red line," Ali Velayati, a senior Iranian politician and advisor to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Khamenei, told the visiting Hamas officials. "The Palestinian cause is the most important cause of the Islamic world, and after all this time you remain committed to the principle of resistance against the Zionists despite all the pressure you are facing."
Arouri and his colleagues rushed to Tehran to seek the support of the Iranian regime in the wake of demands by Abbas that Hamas allow the Palestinian Authority to assume security control over the Gaza Strip. The "reconciliation" agreement stipulates nothing about the need for Hamas to disarm, and Hamas officials have stressed during the past two weeks that they have no intention of laying down their weapons or dismantling their security apparatus in the Gaza Strip.
Hamas views the demand to disarm as part of an Israeli-American "conspiracy" designed to eliminate the Palestinian "resistance" and thwart the "reconciliation" accord with Abbas's Fatah. Hamas's refusal to disarm is already threatening to spoil the "reconciliation."
Arouri was quoted during his visit to Tehran as saying that Hamas "will not backtrack on the option of defending the Palestinian people." He specified that the "reconciliation" agreement with Fatah would not affect the weapons of the Palestinian "resistance," including Hamas. Hamas, he added, will "confront the Israeli-American conspiracy through national unity and reconciliation and by continuing the resistance. The Palestinian resistance forces will always stick to their weapons and will not lay them down."
Hamas also sees the visit of its top officials to Tehran as a rejection of Israel's demand that it cut off its ties with Iran. Hamas officials say they continue to see their relations with Iran as "strategic and significant," especially in wake of Tehran's financial and military aid to their movement in the Gaza Strip.
By aligning itself with Iran, Hamas is also seeking to resist any demand that it abandon its ideology and charter, which call for the destruction of Israel and oppose any peace process between Israelis and Palestinians.
Iranian officials apparently do not like Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority and are not keen on seeing them return to the Gaza Strip. Iran considers Abbas a "traitor" because his Palestinian Authority conducts security coordination with Israel in the West Bank and claims that it is committed to a "peace process" with Israel. This position goes against Iran's wish to destroy the "Zionist entity."
Abbas, for his part, has always considered Iran a threat to his regime as well as to stability in the region. In the past, he has criticized Iran for "meddling" in the internal affairs of the Palestinians by supporting Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.
Earlier this year, the Palestinian Authority strongly condemned Iran after a senior Iranian official accused Abbas of waging war in the Gaza Strip on behalf of Israel. The official's statement came in response to a series of punitive measures imposed by Abbas on the Gaza Strip.
Abbas's spokesman, Nabil Abu Rudaineh, accused Iran of meddling in the internal affairs of the Palestinians and some Arab countries. He said that Iran's actions "encouraged divisions" among the Palestinians. "Iran must stop feeding civil wars in the Arab world," he said. "Iran must stop using rhetoric that only serves Israel and the enemies of the Arabs."
Abbas and the Palestinian Authority are now convinced that Iran is working towards foiling the "reconciliation" agreement with Hamas. They believe that Iran invited the Hamas leaders to Tehran to pressure them not to lay down its weapons.
Abbas and the Egyptians were probably na�ve to think that Hamas would disarm and allow Abbas loyalists to deploy in the Gaza Strip after the signing of the "reconciliation" agreement. It is possible that some of the Hamas leaders had lied to Abbas and the Egyptians by hinting that Hamas would give up security control of the Gaza Strip.
The Egyptians, who played a major role in brokering the Hamas-Fatah deal, are also believed to be worried about Iran's renewed meddling in the internal affairs of the Palestinians. Both the Palestinian Authority and Egypt see the visit of the Hamas delegation to Iran as a serious setback to the "reconciliation" agreement and as a sign that Hamas is not sincere about implementing the accord.
Some Palestinian Authority and Hamas officials have recently claimed that Israel was not happy with their "reconciliation" agreement and was doing its utmost to foil it. The truth, however, is that it is Iran and Hamas that are working to thwart the agreement by insisting on maintaining the status quo in the Gaza Strip. Iran's message to Hamas: If you want us to continue providing you with financial and military aid, you must continue to hold on to your weapons and reject demands to disarm.
What is in it for Iran? Iran wants Hamas to retain its security control over the Gaza Strip so that the Iranians can hold onto another power base in the Middle East.
Iran wants Hamas to continue playing the role of a proxy, precisely as Hezbollah functions in Lebanon.
The last thing Iran wants is for the Palestinian Authority security forces to return to the Gaza Strip: that would spoil Tehran's plans to advance its goal of destroying Israel.
Iran's continued support for Hamas stems not out of love for either Hamas or the Palestinians, but from its own interest in consolidating its presence in the Middle East.
Many Palestinians see the "successful" visit of the Hamas officials to Tehran as a major setback for efforts to end the 10-year-long Hamas-Fatah dispute. Similarly, the Egyptians are now wary of the sudden rapprochement between Iran and Hamas and are beginning to ask themselves whether they have been duped by Hamas. An Israeli delegation that visited Cairo on the eve of the signing of the Hamas-Fatah deal is said to have warned the Egyptians that the "reconciliation" would not work unless Hamas disarms and severs its ties with Iran. However, the Egyptians reportedly failed to listen to the Israeli warning.
As for Israel, the US and other Western parties, the lesson to be drawn from the renewal of ties between Hamas and Iran is that Hamas has not changed one iota.
Contrary to delusional hopes, discussed on the heels of the "reconciliation" agreement in Cairo and based on lies and thin air, Hamas is not headed toward moderation and pragmatism. By openly supporting Hamas, Iran is once again demonstrating that it aims to fan the fire in the Middle East and continue to sabotage any prospects for peace.
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Israeli, Russian & Iranian Interests Collide in Syria
Russia takes on key role in de-escalating tensions between Israel and the Mullahs.
On October 16, Syrian anti-aircraft units fired a SAM-5 anti-aircraft missile at Israeli planes conducting a reconnaissance mission over Lebanon. Israel frequently conducts these types of intelligence gathering operations over Lebanon to keep tabs on Hezbollah. The missile missed, and all Israeli planes returned safely back to base. Shortly thereafter, Israel retaliated transforming the missile battery, located approximately 50 kilometers east of Damascus, into an expensive heap of scrap metal. Following the Israeli strike, an Israel Defense Force spokesman stated that Israel "hold[s] the Syrian regime responsible for the anti-aircraft fire and any attack originating from Syria."
This isn't the first time that the Syrians launched anti-aircraft missiles at Israeli fighter planes. In March, Israel intercepted and destroyed a Syrian SAM-5 missile with an Arrow anti-missile system. The Syrians had fired the missile during an Israeli air raid on a Syrian airbase known as T4 near the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, which was believed to be housing Iranian weapons destined for Hezbollah. While the missile missed, Israeli radar operators who were tracking its flight path feared that the missile, with its 478lb warhead would land in Israeli territory prompting the commander on the scene to order a launch.
These clashes underscore the volatile nature of the existing situation in Syria. With an airbase at Khmeimim, and a naval base in Tartus, and other forces scattered about the country, Russia maintains a formidable military presence in Syria. Israel and Russia maintain cordial relations but a miscalculation by a jittery Russian technician sitting behind a computer screen could trigger a clash between Israeli and Russian forces.
Precisely because of this possible scenario, in 2015 Israel and Russia worked out a de-conflict mechanism designed to prevent accidental mishaps. The two sides routinely conduct high-level political meetings and phone calls to further enhance communication. This week Russia's defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, met his Israeli counterpart, Avigdor Liberman for high-level consultations. No doubt the two discussed the recent clash. According to the London-based Asharq al-Awsat, the Russian defense minister termed the Israeli operation a "dangerous hostile operation that almost caused a severe crisis." That characterization is somewhat one-sided given that it was the Syrians who opened fire first.
Israel and Russia had tangled before. In July 1970, following a series of cat and mouse engagements, Israeli Phantom and Mirage aircraft shot down five Soviet MiG-21 fighter planes over the Suez Canal. Of course back then, Israel and the Soviet Union were bitter enemies and both sides were sporting for a fight. The fear today however, centers on accidental mishaps between two formidable powers and how best to avoid them.
The two defense ministers also discussed Iran and its Shia proxy Hezbollah. These two malevolent forces have increasingly played a dominant role in Syria and assisted Russia its campaign to prop up Assad and defeat the anti-Assad insurgent groups. Israel is concerned that Iran and Hezbollah will attempt to open a second front against Israel near the Israeli-held Golan Heights, and has aggressively acted to thwart this effort.
In January 2015, the Israeli Air Force struck a combined Iranian-Hezbollah cell operating near the Syrian side of the Golan Heights, which resulted in the deaths of 12 senior Hezbollah and Iranian operatives. In December 2015, an Israeli strike in Damascus killed Samir Kuntar, a convicted child murderer and Hezbollah operative who was attempting to foment anti-Israel activities along the border. And in March 2017, an Israeli drone liquidated Yasser al-Sayed, a pro-Assad militia commander who was coordinating planned attacks against Israel with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Israel has asked Russia to ensure that neither Iranian nor Hezbollah forces would operate within 40 kilometers of the Israeli border. The Russian defense minister reportedly rejected the Israeli demand but yielded to a request to expand the existing buffer beyond the 10-15 kilometer zone already agreed upon.
While Russia and Iran (and by extension Hezbollah) are allies, their interests are not necessarily congruent in all respects. Russia wants to continue to exert its influence over Syria and maintain its military bases. The Iranians wish to expand their Shia hegemony and confront Israel. It is not in Russia's interests and serves no Russian purpose to see a clash between Israel and its enemies - Iran, Syria and Hezbollah.
As such, Russia's presence in Syria represents a double-edged sword for Israel. On the one hand, it somewhat constrains Israeli military action given the close proximity of Russian forces to Iranian, Hezbollah and Syrian forces. An Israeli strike could conceivably cause Russian casualties which in-turn could spark a political crisis. Moreover, Russia's powerful military intervention in Syria's civil war likely saved Assad and enabled Iran to maintain a dominant position in Syria.
On the other hand, Russia's interests in maintaining stability in Syria and good relations with Israel serve to prevent Iran from acting recklessly. The Russians will exert their heavy-handed influence over the Iranians to rein them in and keep them from moving close to the Israeli border.
Meanwhile, while Shoigu was meeting with Liberman, Iran's top military chief, Maj.-Gen. Mohammad Hossein Bagheri, met in Damascus with his Syrian counterpart, Lt.-Gen. Ali Ayoub. The Iranian stated that his nation would not sit idly by while Syria was attacked by the "Zionist regime." The Iranians are notorious dissemblers and much of what they spew amounts to hot air but their recent assertiveness - a product of political success through the calamitous Iran deal and military successes in Iraq and Syria - is deeply alarming.
Regardless, as it has demonstrated on countless occasions, Israel will continue to act to safeguard its citizens from malign external threats and preserve its security interests.
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Hezbollah To Leave Syria in 2018 To Prepare for Conflict with Israel - http://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=1715
The Hezbollah terror group is planning to withdraw its forces from Syria in 2018 in order to bolster its presence along Israel's northern border, the Lebanon 24 news website reported on Tuesday.
According to the report, Hezbollah's high command issued a new order mandating that the last remaining fighters from the Lebanese terror group must leave Syria in early 2018.
For the past five years, Hezbollah forces have been fighting alongside the Syrian military in the country's civil war. It is believed that Hezbollah and other Iranian-backed militias helped turned the conflict in favor of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The purported pullout from Syria is designed to ensure that Hezbollah would be able to have a sizable presence along the Lebanese border with Israel.
The report said Hezbollah's commanders realized that the organization's operatives were stretched too thin, to the point that 85 percent of the group's fighting force was in Syria.
More than 1,800 Hezbollah operatives have been killed in the Syrian Civil War.
Hezbollah is believed to have an arsenal of between 100,000 and 150,000 short, medium and long-range missiles available to fire at Israel.
Israeli leaders are issuing their own warnings, making it clear that any provocations by the group can lead to devastation for both it and Lebanon which harbors the group and recently announced it would join a coalition government with Hezbollah.
"The next conflict, if it erupts, will have a completely different character. Our enemies will try first to strike our population centers and civilian infrastructure. And if our red lines will be breached, the other side must know in advance that it is going to pay very heavy prices," said Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman.
Earlier this year, tens of thousands of Israeli soldiers participated in the largest military drill since 1998, simulating war with Hezbollah for 10 days.
Israel-Hezbollah war is inevitable, sure to be devastating - defense experts - By Judah Ari Gross -
International High Level Military Group paints grim picture of potential conflict between Jewish state, Iran-backed terror group, and what, if anything, can prevent it
A war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah terrorist group is inevitable, though not necessarily imminent, and will be unavoidably bloody for both sides, according to an assessment by a number of former generals from around the world, known collectively as the High Level Military Group.
In an extensive report, published Wednesday, the organization details both the IDF's and Hezbollah's reorganization in the 11 years following the Second Lebanon War, the last time the sides engaged in all-out combat with one another. The High Level Military Group (HLMG) also describes the strategies each side will use in the apparently approaching war, as well as the potential pratfalls of those plans.
"Hezbollah doesn't want a conflict to break out at present, given it is still seeking to consolidate its gains in Syria and continue preparations in Lebanon. However, its actions and propaganda suggest that it considers its ability to fight a war with Israel as a given," according to the report.
"The timing of such a conflict is likely to be determined by miscalculation as much as decision-making in Iran and Lebanon."
The group said that should such a war break out, it will likely be "more violent and destructive than the previous ones," due to the improvements that both sides have made to their respective military capabilities in the interim.
The report, "Hezbollah's terror army: How to prevent a third Lebanon war," offers limited recommendations for avoiding such a conflict, instead painting it as a war waiting to happen.
The retired generals and defense officials from the United States, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Colombia, India, and Australia who make up the HLMG also express significant criticism of the United Nations for its "evident severe failure" to fully implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 Second Lebanon War, a dereliction that they credit with exacerbating the situation.
The former military leaders found that the UN Interim Force in Lebanon peacekeeping mission is not enforcing the aspects of Resolution 1701 that are meant to keep armed non-state actors like Hezbollah out of southern Lebanon.
The 76-page report, which is based on interviews solely with Israeli representatives during a fact-finding mission, comes to many of the same conclusions as those of Israeli defense officials. In preparing the assessment, the HLMG did not meet with Lebanese, Hezbollah, or UN officials.
Yet the High Level Military Group maintains that its assessments are "based purely on the accumulated military and strategic experience of its members."
The HLMG, which includes a former chairman of the NATO military committee, a former chief of staff of the Italian army, a former US ambassador-at-large on war crimes, a former director-general of the Indian Defense Intelligence Agency and the outspoken Israel supporter Col. (res.) Richard Kemp of the British military, was created by the Friends of Israel Initiative, a group founded by former Spanish Prime Minister Jos� Mar�a Aznar in 2010 to fight an "unprecedented campaign of delegitimization against Israel."
This is not the group's first foray into Israeli security. In December 2015, the organization also released a report that defended the IDF's actions during the previous year's Gaza war, finding that the army had abided by the rules of armed conflict and even surpassed them.
Hezbollah is all grown up
Hezbollah was founded in 1985, three years after the start of the First Lebanon War. It was created with Iranian support, and began killing Israeli soldiers stationed in IDF outposts in southern Lebanon with anti-tank missiles, improvised explosive devices, and small arms fire.
Over time, however, the group grew from a terrorist nuisance to a full-scale nemesis with significant sway in domestic Lebanese politics. What was once a two-bit terrorist group now represents the benchmark by which the IDF measures its preparedness.
In its report, the former generals and defense officials describe Hezbollah as being "widely considered to be the most powerful non-state armed actor in the world."
As the Lebanese terrorist group has taken part in the fighting on behalf of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad, it has gotten stronger through combat experience and improved access to advanced weaponry from its benefactor, Iran.
"Hezbollah has the political clout of a government, the firepower of an army and the strategic approach of a terrorist organization," according to the report.
Israel believes that Hezbollah maintains a force of approximately 25,000 full-time fighters - 5,000 of which underwent advanced training in Iran - with another at least 20,000 fighters in reserve units.
The terrorist army boasts of possessing attack drones, air defense systems, armored personnel carriers and even tanks. It is also believed to have the Yakhont shore-to-sea missile, with which it can threaten Israeli Navy ships.
But its weapons of choice are missiles and rockets, which it has been amassing and improving, with Iranian assistance, at a fantastic rate.
Hezbollah is believed to possess between 100,000 and 150,000 projectiles, most of them short range. Israeli officials assess that in a future war, the terrorist group would be able to sustain a firing rate of over 1,000 missiles per day.
Increasingly, the IDF believes, the group has been focusing on making its missiles more precise so that it can direct attacks to key Israeli strategic sites.
"Thus, not only has the sheer numeric scale of the threat increased exponentially, but the lethality is greatly increased on account of larger payloads, range and higher targeting accuracy," the HLMG wrote in its report.
Israel has been working to counter that threat through advanced missile defense systems like the Iron Dome, David's Sling, Patriot and Arrow. But military officials regularly stress that these batteries will not provide perfect, hermetic protection.
On the defensive side, Hezbollah has been embedding itself in the southern Lebanese civilian population "for tactical advantage (making the IDF hesitate to attack) and strategic advantage (using images of civilian harm to delegitimize the IDF)," according to the report.
The HLMG said that Hezbollah "transformed almost every Shiite village in the country's south into a military asset."
Inside and under those villages, Hezbollah is believed to have prepared extensive fighting positions from which it could confront the more powerful IDF.
Hezbollah's leader Hassan Nasrallah has also threatened that the terrorist group would not be fighting alone, but would have the support of Iran-backed militias in Syria and other fighters from across the Middle East. This which would force the Israeli army to fight on two fronts or even more, if Hamas in Gaza joins in the conflict as well.
But the terrorist group has another advantage: the Israeli citizenry is unaccustomed to and unprepared for sustained conflict.
"Policymakers expressed concerns about how prepared the Israeli public is for the level of devastation that would be wrought in a major military clash with Hezbollah," the HLMG wrote.
"Younger Israelis are less familiar with the threat of direct attack than older generations, and Israel's success in neutralizing less sophisticated rockets fired from Gaza may have led to inflated expectations of its capacity to intercept the volume of rockets likely to be fired by Hezbollah."
While Hezbollah's arsenal contains "more rockets than many European armies," according to the HLMG report, Israel's military is considered by many analysts to be the most powerful in the Middle East.
"Israel is equipped with the most advanced fighter jets, high-tech armed drones, and is widely assumed to be a nuclear weapons power," the retired generals and defense officials wrote.
"Statistical data available for 2014 suggests that the IDF has 410,500 active frontline personnel, 3,657 tanks, and 989 aircraft."
Israel has also dramatically improved its intelligence on the terrorist group in the 11 years since the Second Lebanon War, an important development, as a severe shortage of accurate information has been blamed for causing many of the conflict's failures.
By combining the overwhelming military force at its disposal and the intelligence required to direct it, the IDF would seek to end a future war quickly, before the Israeli home front would sustain heavy casualties.
"However, as a potential conflict progresses, it will become harder for Israel's military superiority to translate into battlefield victory," according to the HLMG.
In their report, the former generals wrote that Israeli officials told them they expect there to be "thousands of casualties in Lebanon, many of whom will be civilians despite the IDF adhering to the highest standards of the Law of Armed Conflict."
Conspicuously, while the High Level Military Group provides a general estimate of Lebanese casualties, it offers no such assessment of Israeli civilian deaths, beyond saying that the number is "likely to far exceed previous conflicts." (There were 50 Israeli civilian deaths in the 1982 Lebanon War, and 46 in the 2006 conflict.)
Hezbollah is Lebanon, or is it?
One of the lingering questions in the High Level Military Group's report is how Israel perceives the country of Lebanon, if it is fundamentally intertwined with Hezbollah or distinct from it.
"During the HLMG fact-finding, it was clear that an intense policy debate in Israel's upper echelons increasingly sees some senior voices making the case that a conflict should probably be conceived as including the state of Lebanon as an adversary," the former generals wrote.
For instance, Education Minister Naftali Bennett has been leading the charge that the two cannot be separated and that Lebanese national infrastructure should also be counted as a legitimate military target in a future war.
This was not the case in the 2006 Lebanon War, when the IDF's policy was to differentiate between Lebanon and Hezbollah, but developments inside the Arab country could change that.
In its report, the HLMG noted an "increasingly symbiotic relationship between Hezbollah and the Lebanese Armed Forces," which is believed to include intelligence sharing, as well as material cooperation.
"Israel shared evidence with the HLMG that suggests that at least some military equipment which the LAF receives from international patrons, including the United States, ultimately finds its way into the hands of Hezbollah units," the retired generals wrote.
However, some analysts, who are not cited in the HLMG document, make the case, against the view of Bennett and other Israeli officials that Lebanon is Hezbollah, and Hezbollah is Lebanon.
One of these is David Daoud, a researcher analyst for the United Against a Nuclear Iran think tank and advocacy group, who argues that by attacking Lebanese national infrastructure, Israel could end up helping Hezbollah by proving to the Lebanese population that the terrorist group is, as it claims, the country's defender against the "Zionist regime."
The HLMG puts significant focus on the role and failures of UNIFIL, the United Nations peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon.
The international force is generally seen by Israel to be feckless and incapable, or at least unwilling, to take serious action against Hezbollah's force build-up, while in Lebanon the group is perceived by many as being a shill for the IDF.
UNIFIL's activities in southern Lebanon are dictated by UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which, among other things, calls for no non-state armed forces to occupy positions south of Lebanon's Litani River.
According to the HLMG, the United Nations force understands Resolution 1701 "in a very narrow sense with regards to the authority to search for weapons in Lebanon and curtail the activity of armed groups."
Israel, and now the HLMG, argue that this mandate should be interpreted more broadly, which would allow UNIFIL to curb Hezbollah's efforts to prepare for war by actively preventing the terror group from possessing weapons south of the Litani, with force if necessary.
"A new and improved mandate is required to address the situation," according to the report.
What else can be done?
Beyond granting UNIFIL broader powers, the High Level Military Group offers scant advice for preventing a future conflict between Hezbollah and Israel.
What advice is offered is relatively vague, with no specifics to implement or mention of its feasibility. The main recommendation is to address not Hezbollah, but its patron.
"The international community must take actions to curtail Iran's activities, raise the cost of its behavior and engage in efforts at deterrence," the group wrote.
In terms of Hezbollah specifically, the High Level Military Group calls for Western nations to cease distinguishing the terror group's political and terrorist wings.
The international community must take actions to curtail Iran's activities
The former generals and defense officials also encourage the United States to make any future aid arrangements with Lebanon contingent "on a plan to strip Hezbollah of its de facto status as the leading force in the country."
More generally, the HLMG calls for the West to "strongly support Israel in its efforts to de-escalate the tensions."
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Israel willing to resort to military action to stop Iran acquiring nukes -
Intelligence Minister Israel Katz says the Jewish state ready to act alone if international efforts don't produce results.
Israel is willing to resort to military action to ensure Iran never acquires nuclear weapons, the intelligence minister said on Thursday in Japan where he is seeking backing for US President Donald Trump's tougher line on Tehran.
Trump said on Oct. 13 he would not certify Iran is complying with an agreement on curtailing its nuclear program, signed by his predecessor, Barack Obama, opening a 60-day window for Congress to act to reimpose sanctions.
"If international efforts led these days by US President Trump don't help stop Iran attaining nuclear capabilities, Israel will act militarily by itself," Intelligence Minister Israel Katz said in an interview in Tokyo. "There are changes that can be made (to the agreement) to ensure that they will never have the ability to have a nuclear weapon."
Israel has taken unilateral action in the past without the consent of its major ally, the United States, including air strikes on a suspected nuclear reactor in Syria in 2007 and in Iraq in 1981. A strike against Iran, however, would be a risky venture with the potential to provoke a counter strike and roil financial markets.
An Israeli threat of military strikes could, nonetheless, galvanize support in the United States for toughening up the nuclear agreement but it could also backfire by encouraging hardliners in Iran and widening a rift between Washington and European allies.
So far, none of the other signatories to the deal - Britain, France, Germany, Russia, China, Iran and the European Union - has cited serious concerns, leaving the United States isolated.
Japan relies on the US military to help defend it against threats from North Korea and elsewhere. Tokyo's diplomatic strategy in the Middle East, where it buys almost all its oil, is to maintain friendly relations with all countries, including Iran.
"I asked the Japanese government to support steps led by President Trump to change the nuclear agreement," said Katz, who is a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party. "The question of whether Japanese companies will begin to work in Iran or not is a very important question."
Katz's visit to Tokyo comes ahead of a planned trip by Trump from Nov. 5 for a summit with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Officials at Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs were not immediately available to comment.
Israel, Katz said, wants the nuclear agreement to be revised to remove an expiration date, and to impose tighter conditions to stop Tehran from developing new centrifuges used to make weapons-grade nuclear material.
He also urged sanctions to stop Iran from establishing Syria as a military base to launch attacks on Israel and action to put a halt to Tehran's development of ballistic missiles.
"We will not allow Iran to transform Syria into forward base sea harbors, air bases and Shia militias," he said. "We will act together with the United States and other countries in the world until they stop the ballistic missiles that threaten Israel." The US House of Representatives on Wednesday backed new sanctions on Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah militia.
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