Drumbeats of War - Rumors from Israel
Reliability of the following information being featured in mainstream Israeli news sources is not high. But is interesting. The more so if there is truth behind it. Sources include IDF Army radio.
All are reporting Saturday morning Israel local time that Syria is on ‘high alert’ for an attack by Israel on weapons marshaled for Lebanese Hizballah within Syrian borders.
The reports also say there has been an increase of UAV reconnaissance flights over Syria, which they say indicates an ‘imminent attack’. From Iranian sources, there is news of reconnaissance flights over Lebanon… which is a normal occurrence… and also an unusual overflight by a surveillance balloon that apparently lasted for an extended period.
Israeli sources say Syria is under mounting pressure from the United States and ‘other nations’ to use its influence on Hamas and Islamic Jihad to keep them from violently sabotaging the crown jewel of the Obama administration’s Middle East policy, the Israeli-Palestinian Authority peace talks.
Same sources say Syria told the West that they would not consider telling Hamas or any other faction what to do about the talks. That’s a flat-out refusal to support the talks, and a sanction for disruptive violence.
We are to infer that is the reason for the threatened military strikes by Israel against Syria.
Another item I cannot vouch for but is prominently featured in both Israeli and Iranian news sources: Frederick Hoff, who has been practicing shuttle diplomacy on behalf of US Middle East Peace Envoy George Mitchell, and was sent to Lebanon last week to try to cool things down, is said to have lost his cool instead.
Original source for this is said to be the Lebanese newspaper Aliwaa.
The rather startling story has Hoff telling the Lebanese Army Chief of Staff that if there is another incident on the Israel-Lebanon border like the one earlier in the month, the Israeli Defense Forces would completely destroy all the assets, bases and offices of the Lebanese Armed Forces. Within four hours.
IDF Army Radio is carrying this story as well.
Rumors… perhaps. It’s also possible that some part of this, or even all of it, is true.
The stock market today definitely did not signal that a US attack was imminent. But we are not the only player in the area. The Israelis really seem less than happy about the way things have been going since Bushehr started fueling.
August is not yet over. Neither is Ramadan.
