The Israeli military sounded a triumphant tone on Thursday morning, having just conducted a massive bombing campaign on targets in Syria, amid a back and forth of rocket fire along the border with Israel.
Israel said the airstrikes were in response to rockets fired into the Golan Heights, though the rocket fire came on the heels of a more limited Israeli strike on targets outside Damascus the night before.
Iranian military capabilities have been set back “many months,” after strikes on “dozens” of targets, Israeli Defense Forces said. IDF spokesperson Leutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus said that the overnight strike was the “largest such operation [by Israel] against Iranian targets,”
“All of the targets that we engaged were effectively destroyed,” he added, causing “significant damage” to the Iranians.
“We have hit almost all the Iranian infrastructure in Syria,” Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said, according to a post on the ministry’s official website. “If we have rain, there will be a flood in them.”
While all this was going on, on the heels of president Trump’s decision to pull out of the Iran deal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was getting the royal treatment – in Moscow.
The long-scheduled visit with Russian President Vladimir Putin also coincided with an important Russian holiday, Victory Day. Netanyahu was special guest of Putin for the annual military parade, Anshel Pfeffer writes for Haaretz, a detail that shouldn’t be overlooked.
“Not only did Putin do everything to play up his guest’s presence, but hours after Israel’s counter-attack on Thursday morning, the IDF spokesman made it clear that, before Israel embarked on its largest campaign of bombing in Syria since 1974, Russia had been notified through the deconfliction process that the two countries have had in place since September 2015.
[…]
“Russia and Iran are both supporting Assad but that doesn’t mean they share the same priorities. Putin can’t, or won’t get the Iranians to leave their strongholds in Syria. But he seems content to allow Israel to continue bombing them.”
But, Pfeffer says, if things continue to escalate, Putin will eventually have to pick a side.
Frankly I’m among the many who have seen what it means to be an ally with the Russians. They will allow you to be butchered and they will be counting how many punches you dogged. Syria and Iran must settle for a political solution to the quagmire they are into before it’s too late because they don’t have to rely on Russian military assistance, which is obviously not coming. To Russians pack your things and go back to Moscow before you are slapped in the face again, Turkey down your Jet and you blinkered, USA killed a number of your boys and you crawled into your bunkers with shame. What else do you want to do in Syria, you shamed your self enough. Shame on you
Putin is a corrupt man anything for money
Where would be Syria today without the help of the russians? Syria will be protected by Russia because both have no other choice and they wouldn’t choose anyhing else. Russia, and only Russia, is in Syria under the invitation of the Assad government. All others are illegally occupying Syria by force. France, USA, Israel, UK, and many many more are, to this day, responsible for 100.000 dead syrian soldiers who gave their lives trying to save their country from the thugs who claim to represent democracy… Yankee Go Home…. forever!…
Where would be Syria today without the help of the russians? Syria will be protected by Russia because both have no other choice and they wouldn’t choose anyhing else. Russia, and only Russia, is in Syria under the invitation of the Assad government. All others are illegally occupying Syria by force. France, USA, Israel, UK, and many many more are, to this day, responsible for 100.000 dead syrian soldiers who gave their lives trying to save their country from the thugs who claim to represent democracy… Yankee Go Home…. forever!…
The bombs come with camera to ensure precise delivery. You are welcome with whatever you believe or not believe.
Russians like many other counries are treading cautiosly in any Arab conflict. Arab countries are arrogant in nature always on the threshold of violence and pride of oil rich monarchs.
Russia is not wholeheartedly committed to Islamic cause and so cannot protect them wholesale
Assad wants Russians like anything. So far, Russia is d only super power directly involved in the battle that degraded the opposition Assad couldn’t defeat. Fact, Iran & Russia have different interests in Syria. Iran only wanted to use Assad to get close to Isreal, & bridge d gap with Hesbollah. Russia knows this and wouldnt want to shielding Iran & Hesbollah, appearing to be against Isreal, who is ready to strike anyone who stands in its way. Aside, Iran claims to be able to degrade Isreal, hence asking 4 Russian support would be shameful. The only way out is Iran should pull out of Syria becos neither Assad or Putin can help them. Fighting Isreal 4m Syria and supporting Israel’s enemy is like biting more tan they can chew. If they are claiming super power in that region, dey should consider economic consequences, especially now that US pulled out of the deal.
You are misinformed
Lol
Russia commitment is with Israel in a worst case scenario to preserve its brother Israel (in faith). But Rissia’s interest is focused on Syria’s Resources…. oil for arms.
So inform us please Prince.
My dismay is no one who commented to this post condemned military strike by one country into another country without the request of the government where the strike is happening.
langis ang pinag-uusapan jan, energy,
Noel Jean: you have no clue about what’s been going on in Syria. The country been in a civil war for 5+ years; Assad is a brutal dictator desperate to hang on to power and has used his army to slaughter over 500,000 of his own people, most of whom were unarmed civilians. He dumps poison gas — banned by international treaty since the end of WWI, and to which Assad has signed — to kill more innocent civilians. As the Syrian civil war raged on, with different opposition groups fighting Assad’s forces, the US provided training for what they considered to be “moderate” (not extremist opposition groups). With the Syrian Army spread out , terrorist group ISIS (Islamic State in Syria) gained control of relatively large sections of Syria and set up its self-declared Caliphate (and then took territory in Iraq). Iraq asked the US for help to reclaim territory lost to ISIS by training special units of the Iraqi National Army and by providing air cover for its ground forces (Iraq lacks a modern air force). After the Iraqi’s defeated ISIS and pushed the remnants out of their country, the US focus turned to Syria. With Syria in chaos with no effective central government, the US inserted small groups of special forces to track and locate ISIS forces, and US Air Force an Navy aircraft attacked them (the UK and France joined in this operation to defeat ISIS, given the number of terrorist attacks it either directly orchestrated in Europe and the US or otherwise inspired. In no instances did European or US forces attack Assad’s army, although there may have been some incidental casualties.
Your claim that these nations — along with Israel — killed 100,000 pro-Assad forces is complete and utter nonsense. Do you just make up your trash comments and pull numbers out of thin air? Exactly who are the "thugs" who killed 100,000 Syrian soldiers? It’s not any of the countries you listed, who would like to see Assad gone but don’t want to get into another Middle East war. It’s not Israel. The Israeli’s have responded to two different rocket attacks instigated by either Syrian or Iranian thugs. In the first case, they determined where the rockets were fired, and then attacked the launch site. In the second case, just a few days later, after 20 missiles were fired into Israel from Syria, the Israeli’s discovered that Iranian batteries were used; and the Israeli Air Force decided to respond more forcefully by attacking multiple Iranian rocket sites close to the border. So again, if 100,000 brave Syrian soldiers died to support this dictator (and comes from a small minority sect within Syria), who ‘done’ it? Most likely and logical answer would be their fellow Syrians. The ones who were fed up with Assad’s brutal dictatorship, who wanted him gone and a more representative type of government instead.
Assad was close to losing when the Russians stepped in. Assad had been Russia’s only reliable ally in the Middle East, providing them with access to ports in the Mediterranean as well as airfields. And like Assad, the Russians weren’t concerned about who might be on the ground when they dropped bombs and fired missiles from their advanced air force jet fighters and bombers. If a few hundred civilians got in the way when they were trying to take out some Syrian opposition fighters, so be it. And despite Putin stating that this would be a limited engagement, Russia sent more air force assets to Syria, fortifying air bases, expanding runways, etc. Putin had already decided he didn’t want to take a chance losing his only ally in the region. Putin and and his Syria-based air force have devastated the opposition ground forces (and lots of innocent civilians), allowed the battered Syrian army time to re-group and resupply, and changed the balance of power back toward Assad and his corrupt and deadly thugs. The Iranians have taken advantage of Assad’s comeback by trying to send via ground advanced weaponry to Hezbollah in Lebenon, although the Israelis have detected most all of this and destroyed it from the air before it reached Hezbollah.
End of lesson of recent history and current events. Maybe you could actually learn something from this, but I rather doubt it. You’ll likely continue to spew out you bs stories based on lunacy rather than learn the facts and talk about them. Here’s another fact and opinion for you, just to show you that I am not always pro-US on everything. The 2003 invasion of Iraq was based on faulty intelligence, and even though Saddam Hussein was another thug who brutalized his people, we had no right to invade Iraq. We ended up causing more mysery and death then anyone imagined. Additionally, we invaded Afghanistan because the Taliban refused to turn over Osama bin Ladin after 9/11. He’s been dead for 8 years. It’s way past time for us to get out of Afghanistan and let the people of that country figure out their own future.
Noel Jean you don’t see American military in Syria. The Yangkees are home…enjoying the show?
One thing is sure, Israel had taught Iran the art of missile technology and Iran is back to square one again. All their military sites in Syria were decimated. Hard lesson is always the end result of engaging a war.
Don’t be the proverbial frog relaxing while basking in the soon to boil water. This is real as it can be.
DENIAL… Always denied the existence of israel. As long as these thinking persist in the minds of muslims there will be no peace in the Middle East. Leave Israel alone and peace will cometh in the Middle East. Deny it and there will always be Goliath and David till Kingdom come.
Hahaha
Rajendra Veluppillai Maderchod ..bhakt ki Gand. SAFFRON TERRORIST
There was no "back & forth" you deceiving media liar. Iran alone attacked Israel & then got the snot beat out of them for doing it. GOOD.
Fool!
Ping Olarte. Alam mo ba ang meaning ng Lol mo e Lucifer our Lord? Are you Satanist?
I agree..Russia can’t easily be depended on..as the Russian are too slow to respond to any form of aggression on their allies this the USA would not take for granted.
I no that president Putin is not as stupid as people think that he will support Iran let us look and see how Russian will support terrorist country president Trump said it all that God can gauge by the Friend you keep if Russian choose the support Islamic nations against Israel is let for the all I no at this time it is over intimidation against Israel is over no nation can come against them and go free God is watching the is God in Haven the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob is at work as for Palestinians let them accept anything that Israel will present to them if the continued this way the will be dying which is not Good. Let Muslims forget about if you are not Islamic you will die God is not going to gauge us because of our religion is with our faith in him and his son Jesus Christ the one who bring civilization in the world God bless each one of every country God bless united state of America God bless united state of Israel and God bless united state of Biafra In God and his son Jesus christ we trust
In this type of theatre one can’t ask for a better training ground. One’s skills are sure to improve. To break a few eggs to make an omelet is now being served a la carte by the Russians.
Dan Korn are you kidding? all this information is false. you base your information on Western and American media! In fact, you are misinformed.
Do some research on the American intervention in the Middle East and you will discover how bad the Americans and the French are. Ready to kill for money and their own interest.
they always use the intent of democracy to justify their attack after what do we have? a country destroyed without any administration!
Today, many experts have proved in the same voice that Saddam Hussein did not use chemical weapons and that he did not have the technology to develop it.
look at libya, yemen, irack and many others …
think twice!
cordially