Opinion: An Israeli response to Hezbollah provocations is exactly what Iran wants, and a lack of response could further fuel Iran and Hezbollah; Iran turned military defeat into strategic victory and turned the military victory of the US and Israel into a strategic defeat
Every day, at around 2 p.m. in Israel, morning in the United States, many Israelis go on tweet alert. His Majesty, Donald Trump, leader of the free world, wakes up, and the tweet offensive begins. How did he wake up today? On which side of the bed? In recent days, ahead of the U.S. surrender agreement with Iran, the tension has only grown. What argument will he offer this time for the bankruptcy of the world’s greatest power? What jab will he fire in Israel’s direction?
But we must admit: Trump’s tweets matter less and less. Because he himself has handed control to Iran. This is the most deranged country in the world. It is the country that operates a series of terror organizations across the Middle East, Hezbollah being the strongest and most dangerous of them. And as Iran’s standing grows stronger, Hezbollah’s standing grows stronger as well. America’s standing, meanwhile, grows weaker. Iran has succeeded in turning a military defeat into a strategic victory. It has also turned the military victory of the United States and Israel into a strategic defeat.
(Photo: Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP)
Iran is already violating the agreement. It is announcing the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and is also threatening to launch ballistic missiles at Israel. After all, His Majesty Trump gave it permission to develop missiles and possess missiles. And what are missiles for, if not to launch them?
So why are they closing the passage through Hormuz and threatening to launch missiles at Israel? Iran has an excuse: the war in southern Lebanon. That is Iranian sophistication. They send Hezbollah to fire munitions at the IDF, while violating the cease-fire. The IDF is forced to respond. And there it is: Iran has an endless pretext to torment the United States.
To make the United States look even more ridiculous, Iran announces that the Iranian delegation, headed by Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of the Iranian parliament and chief negotiator, is on its way to the mountain resort of Bürgenstock in Switzerland. Qatar is deeply involved. The resort where the talks are to be held is registered under Katara Hospitality, which is owned by Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund. It can be assumed that almost every point at the site is already wired with microphones. If and when the talks begin there, the Qataris will know everything. And since they work in the service of the Muslim Brotherhood and Iran, it is clear who will benefit from the impressive location, which has previously hosted diplomatic summits.
There is logic to Iran’s moves. It wants to drive a wedge between the United States and Israel through its Hezbollah proxy. It is succeeding. And Israel faces a dilemma. An Israeli response to Hezbollah’s provocations is exactly what Iran wants. Failure to respond, on the other hand, could whet the appetite of Iran and Hezbollah.
There is logic to Iran’s moves. It wants to drive a wedge between the United States and Israel through its Hezbollah proxy. It is succeeding.
In this situation, Israel needs a diplomatic arm to present Hezbollah’s repeated ceasefire violations. To exercise restraint, so it will be clear that this is a deliberate provocation. Only after it is clear who is violating the cease-fire, and only after the headlines stop saying “Israel bombs Lebanon” and instead say “Hezbollah violates ceasefire,” will Israel be able to respond. The problem is that Israel has no diplomatic arm. And the headlines about the bombings receive far greater prominence than Hezbollah’s violations.
Under the circumstances, the prime minister’s statement Saturday, that Israel is holding its fire, is the correct response. It is meant to put the ball back in Iran’s court. Not that this will cancel the surrender agreement. Far from it. Even the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and even the launch of ballistic missiles at Israel, will not move the United States.
Iran can torment it as much as it wants. Because the United States is deeply sunk in this agreement, and all the dubious explanations it has already offered for it amount to a total liquidation of assets. Oil prices, oh, the oil, Trump said. The global economy nearly entered a terrible crisis, he added. So now he is going to do something? It will not happen. “Even if I murder someone on Fifth Avenue,” Trump said in 2016, “they would still vote for me.” Now it is Iran. Even if it murders a few Americans, just because it feels like it, Trump will still bow his head and argue that it is Iran’s right.
We must hope the current crisis ends. But afterward, Israel must be pulled out of the terrible low point it has reached in the United States. Because without change, today’s problems will look like child’s play compared with tomorrow’s.
As reported by Ynetnews