Syrian anti-government fighters cheer as they ride a military vehicle through the streets of the west-central city of Hama on December 5, 2024. (Rami al Sayed/AFP)
THE TIMES OF ISRAEL | Published December 6, 2024
Netanyahu holds security deliberations, with officials said to believe rebel advance poses ‘real threat’ to Assad’s rule
Israel is said to be preparing for the possibility that the Syrian army may collapse in the face of rapidly advancing rebel forces, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holding security deliberations on the matter on Thursday night.
Channel 13 reported that the IDF now assesses the rebels may pose a real threat to the continuation of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s rule. According to a report on Channel 12, Israel has been surprised by the weakness of the Syrian army, as it continues to swiftly lose ground to the jihadist-led fighters.
The report added that Israel has sent a strong warning to Iran not to send weaponry to Syria that could reach the hands of the Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon.
Kan news reported, citing two unnamed sources, that Israel and the United States are “detecting signs of certain collapse” in the Syrian army, and that one of Israel’s main concerns is that the rebels will advance as far south as the Israeli border with Syria in the Golan Heights.
Channel 13 said Israel has conveyed messages to rebel leaders to stay away from the border.
Earlier on Thursday, Defense Minister Israel Katz and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi held an assessment on the developments in Syria, as the rebels led by Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) captured the key central city of Hama, a little more than a week after they launched their offensive, just as a ceasefire took hold between Israel and Assad’s ally in Lebanon, Hezbollah.
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SOURCE: www.timesofisrael.com
RELATED: Israeli intelligence sees growing chance Assad’s forces collapse in Syria
A fraying billboard showing Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo after rebels took the city. Photo: Amar Haj Kadour/AFP via Getty
AXIOS | Published December 6, 2024
Israeli intelligence officials have been startled by a faster-than-expected collapse of the Syrian army’s defense lines over the last 24 hours, two senior Israeli officials tell Axios.
Why it matters: The rapid advance of the rebels — who captured the city of Hama on Thursday, days after taking Aleppo — could precipitate a collapse of the Syrian Army. One of the senior Israeli officials said the fall of Damascus now seems more plausible than it had until very recently.
A U.S. official agreed that the Syrian Army’s defensive lines are rapidly collapsing. “The Syrian military forces are not really fighting,” the official told Axios.
“We don’t think the regime is in immediate danger, but this is the biggest challenge for the Assad regime in the last decade.”
Israel, Egypt and Jordan have all expressed concern to the U.S. in recent days about the developments in Syria and the potential for a dramatic shift inside the country, the U.S. official said.
Behind the scenes: Israeli officials said several urgent consultations were held inside the Israel Defense Forces on Thursday in light of the rapid advances by the rebels.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz held a meeting with the IDF senior leadership about the developments in Syria.
The Israeli security cabinet meeting on Thursday night is expected to focus largely on the situation in Syria, Israeli officials say.
The U.S. official said that Israel had expressed concern to Washington about a takeover of Syria by radical Islamic elements on the one hand, or an alternative scenario in which additional Iranian forces enter the country and increase Tehran’s influence.
Between the lines: Iran and Hezbollah have been crucial to helping Assad retain power through 13 years of civil war. During that time, Israel has conducted repeated strikes to push pro-Iranian forces back from its borders.
But while a defeat of Assad would also be a strategic defeat for Iran, it could pose significant security challenges of its own for Israel given the constellation of Islamist forces involved in the rebel offensive.
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SOURCE: www.axios.com
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