Iranian arms storage facilities in Syria were bombed yesterday. That’s not something new. Israel has been doing it regularly. What’s different is that the attackers were American. The strike came in response to many attacks by rockets and drones on US base facilities in Iraq and Syria. To use American phrasing – Iran’s fingerprints were all over those attacks. Iran replied with a warning, but, significantly, no actions (yet). The US says this was not related to the war in Gaza. Many residents in the region are likely to think otherwise. The real question is will Iran be deterred from trying to widen the war. I don’t think they will, but I do believe they will make great efforts to be more circumspect.
That wasn’t the only new development. Israeli forces made a ground “raid” into the northern part of the Gaza strip. There have been IDF probing patrols before this, probably primarily to gather intelligence. But this emphasizes the Israeli position that a major ground attack is being delayed, for a SHORT time, in order to allow hostage release negotiations a chance to move forward. I emphasized short, because Israel has no intention to allow Hamas to drag the talks out until there can be international intervention. Speaking of that, the European Union called for humanitarian “pauses” to allow aid to displaced civilians to get through. The resolution exposed some important divisions between member states while formulating the final wording. This should be an indicator to Israel that time is running out.
It has been reported that Israel was even ready to allow fuel to be swapped for hostages (release of any Hamas prisoners was rejected out of hand). This was communicated via Qatar, since Hamas still won’t talk directly to Israel. An explanation of why fuel is so important to Hamas is in order at this point. Hamas has constructed an elaborate labyrinth of tunnels underneath the streets and buildings in Gaza. The tunnels are an integral part of their defense plans and allow for protected movement of troops and rockets to locations wherever Hamas feels they are needed. Underground tunnels need ventilation. The fans that pump air into them need fuel to keep running. It’s not rocket science, but it is rocket deployment and launching science.
Since tomorrow is Shabbat, I won’t make another post for 2 days. You’ll have to rely on your own senses to carefully watch and listen to the commercial media. I hope material I’ve provided will be helpful for that.
Wetherhorn 