The situation in the Middle East has always been tense, and there have been a number of conflicts in recent days, which have aroused great concern from the international community. Among them, the confrontation between Israel and Allah in Lebanon has raised fears that a new round of war may break out in northern Israel. And Syria's role in this crisis is also in the spotlight, as Israel is putting intense pressure on it to stop supporting Hamas or face serious consequences.
The conflict between Israel and Allah has escalated
Israel and Lebanese Allah have a long history of conflicts, and there have been many armed conflicts between the two sides over the past few decades. Allah, an Iranian-backed Shiite armed group, controls much of southern Lebanon and is the main threat to northern Israel. Allah has always viewed Israel as an enemy, supported Palestinian resistance and clashed with Israeli interests in regions such as Syria and Iraq.
In recent days, the conflict between Israel and Allah has escalated, with multiple exchanges of fire between the two sides in the border area. The worst of these occurred on January 4, when Allah fired several anti-tank missiles at a military post in northern Israel, injuring an Israeli soldier. The Israeli side immediately counterattacked, firing dozens of shells into areas controlled by Allah, causing some property damage. The exchange of fire between the two sides lasted nearly an hour, the most intense since the second Lebanese war between Israel and Allah in 2006.
The conflict was triggered by Allah's retaliation for an Israeli airstrike on a Syrian base last December, which killed a senior Allah commander and three Iranian officers. Allah had vowed to retaliate against Israel, and Israel was ready to respond. Both sides have increased the deployment of troops in the border areas, strengthened their vigilance, and are ready to start or respond to a new round of war.
Israeli strikes on Syria have escalated
Syria's role in the confrontation between Israel and Allah cannot be ignored either. Syria is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious country that has been politically unstable and has been mired in an ongoing civil war since 2011. The civil war in Syria has attracted intervention from many parties, including the United States, Russia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and other countries, as well as Iran, Allah, Hamas and other organizations. These external forces are all competing for their own interests on the battlefield in Syria, and they have also affected the internal structure of Syria.
Israel is Syria's neighbor and Syria's hostile state. The contradictions between Israel and Syria mainly stem from two issues: first, the ownership of the Golan Heights, a piece of Syrian territory occupied by Israel in the Third Middle East War in 1967, which Israel declared its annexation in 1981, but neither Syria nor the international community recognized it; The second is the issue of Iran's presence in Syria, which is Syria's main ally and Israel's sworn enemy, and Iran has deployed a large number of military forces in Syria, including the Revolutionary Guards, Shiite militias and Allah, which Israel considers to pose a serious threat to it, especially Iran's nuclear program and missile program.
As a result, Israel has been carrying out covert strikes against Syria, mainly targeting Iranian and Allah targets in Syria, as well as convoys transiting ** to Lebanon and the Gaza Strip. Israeli strikes are generally carried out by means of air strikes, and Israel's air force has advanced warplanes and missiles that are capable of delivering precise strikes against targets beyond the detection range of Syrian air defenses. Israel's strike has also been tacitly approved by the United States and Russia, the United States is Israel's biggest ally, and Russia is the largest supporter of Syria, but neither side wants to see Iran's power in Syria too strong, nor does it want to make the situation in Syria worse.
In recent days, Israel's strikes on Syria have escalated and become more direct and harsh, especially air strikes on Iran's ** transfer and air defense systems. Compared to the past, Israel no longer warns in advance and takes a more powerful ** to carry out more frequent attacks on targets. This adjustment of strategy shows that Israel has become more assertive on Syria. Here are some examples of recent Israeli strikes on Syria:
On December 25, the Israeli Air Force carried out an airstrike on a military base near the Syrian capital, Damascus, killing at least three Iranian officers and four members of Allah, including senior Allah commander Im'ad al-Mughniyeh. It was one of Israel's largest air strikes in Syria and one of the most important strikes against Allah.
On January 6, the Israeli Air Force carried out an airstrike on a military base in central Syria, killing at least eight Iranian officers and eleven Shiite militiamen, including Ali Asghari, a senior commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps. This is one of the deadliest Israeli air strikes in Syria and one of the most important strikes against Iran.
On January 9, the Israeli Air Force carried out an airstrike on a military base in southern Syria, killing at least a dozen Syrian soldiers and four Iranian officers, including Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. This is one of the largest Israeli air strikes in Syria and one of the most important strikes against Syria.
On January 10, the Israeli Air Force carried out an airstrike on a military base in northern Syria, killing at least 15 Syrian soldiers and six Iranian officers, including Ali Raza, the missile commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps. This is one of the latest Israeli airstrikes in Syria and one of the most important strikes against Syria and Iran.
From the above incidents, it can be seen that Israel's strikes on Syria have not only targeted Iran and Allah, but also begun to strike at Syrian military facilities and personnel, even at the expense of its own pilots and aircraft. This suggests that Israel has radically changed its attitude towards Syria and no longer sees it as a neutral state, but as a hostile state, a country that supports Hamas.
Israel issued an ultimatum to Syria
Israel's strikes on Syria are driven not only by a response to the threat of Iran, but also by repression of Hamas. Hamas, an Iranian-backed Sunni armed group that controls the Palestinian Gaza Strip and is the main threat to southern Israel. Hamas has always regarded Israel as an enemy, carrying out numerous suicide bombings and rocket attacks, as well as three large-scale wars with Israel in 2008, 2012 and 2014.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas has also escalated in recent days, with multiple exchanges of fire between the two sides in the Gaza Strip and the border areas of southern Israel. The worst of these occurred on January 8, when Hamas fired a long-range rocket into the southern Israeli city of Beersheba, killing an Israeli civilian and injuring dozens more. The Israeli side immediately counterattacked, firing hundreds of artillery shells and missiles into the Gaza Strip, killing at least 15 Hamas members and five civilians, as well as extensive property damage. The exchange of fire between the two sides lasted nearly two hours, the most intense since the third Gaza war between Israel and Hamas in 2014.
The conflict was triggered by Hamas's retaliation for an Israeli airstrike on a base in Syria last December, which killed a senior Hamas commander and two Iranian officers. Hamas has vowed to retaliate against Israel, and Israel is ready to respond. Both sides have increased the deployment of troops in the border areas, strengthened their vigilance, and are ready to start or respond to a new round of war.
In the confrontation between Israel and Hamas, Syria's role cannot be ignored either. Syria is an important supporter of Hamas and an important rear base for Hamas. Many of Hamas's senior leaders and members live in Syria's capital, Damascus, and other cities, and Syria** provides political, economic, and military support to Hamas. Syria is also an important transit point for Hamas to obtain ** from Iran and Allah, and many of Hamas's rockets and missiles are transported to the Gaza Strip through Syrian territory.
Therefore, Israel's attack on Syria is also aimed at weakening Hamas's strength and preventing it from gaining more ** from Syria, and it is also to send a clear warning to Syria that it will no longer support Hamas, otherwise it will face serious consequences.