Moscow Izvestiya Online in
Russian
[Article by Konstantin Volkov: "Israel
Rehearses Strike Against Iran in Syria. Destruction of Iranian Missiles in
Syrian Territory Looks Like a Warning to Tehran"]
On 5 May Israel carried out a missile strike on
Syrian territory not far from Damascus. The target was a consignment of
Fateh-110 tactical missiles being supplied by Iran to the Hezbollah
organization in Lebanon. According to Israeli intelligence information they
were being kept at the depot of a military unit in the population center of
Jamraya to the north of the Syrian capital.
Eyewitnesses report that the blaze from the
explosions was visible in the night sky from many kilometers away. According to
the Syrian news agency SANA a military research center located to the north of
Damascus was blown up.
"This is an attempt to stop Fateh-110
missiles with a 500-kilogram warhead, adapted for antiship firing, from falling
into the hands of Hezbollah," the Israeli military expert Uzi Rubin
believes. "Their accuracy is five times higher than that of the Scud
missiles that the militants usually use."
Hezbollah is currently delaying the penetration
of militants and weapons from Lebanon to join the anti-Asad armed opposition.
"The Israelis carried out a strike on
Syrian territory in fear of the strengthening of Hezbollah and of aggression
against themselves, including the use of chemical weapons," Mahmud
al-Hamza, member of the opposition Syrian National Council, says.
"Meanwhile the interesting thing is that Syrian President Bashar al-Asad
is now keeping quiet, even though Damascus has been preparing for war with the
neighboring state for 40 years. That is to say, he no longer has the strength
to combat external aggression."
According to Yevgeniy Satanovskiy, president of
the Institute of the Middle East, who is currently in Israel, the military are
bringing Iron Dome antimissile systems up to the country's northern borders and
reservists have been drafted into the Army.
"The shelling of Syria can be regarded as
the prelude to a strike against Iran," Satanovskiy says. "Hezbollah
is funded from Tehran, and Tel Aviv is making it clear that it is ready to
respond to the Iranian side's military preparations."
A presidential election is due to take place in
Iran on 14 June. No active operations by the Israeli side should be expected
before then, but, beginning in July, a combat operation could begin, the expert
suggests.
Since the beginning of 2013 Israel has carried
out three strikes on Syrian territory. The first was in January, also at
Jamraya, where SA-17 surface-to-air missiles were located at the time. On that
occasion two people were killed. The second strike was three days later and the
target, as on 5 May, was Fateh-110 missiles.
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