Iraq seen entering war if Israel counters Hizbullah attacks
By Steve Rodan, Middle East Newsline
SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM
Sunday, December 3, 2000
JERUSALEM — For the first time in a decade, Israel has raised the
prospect of a regional war with the Arab world with the key participation of
Iraq.
Israeli sources said the most likely prospect is a Hizbullah attack on
the northern Israeli border. Israel would then react by retaliating against
Syrian military installations in Lebanon. This, in turn, would result in
Iraqi and Iranian intervention.
Already, Syria has moved troops from the Beirut area to the Bekaa valley
near the Syrian border. The area is regarded as the most likely Israeli
invasion route to Syria.
"If the deterioration in the north continues, it will be inevitable that
Syrian and Lebanese power centers will be struck," Israeli National Security
Adviser Maj. Gen. Uzi Dayan said.
Such a prospect could take place imminently or be delayed for months,
the sources said. They said this was the strongest threat of a regional war
in more than a decade.
The sources said Israel and the United States have relayed messages to
Syria to stop Hizbullah attacks along the border. Syria has up to 30,000
troops in Lebanon and controls the Hizbullah.
Syria, however, has so far rejected the warnings. Instead, President
Bashar Assad has formed new links with Iraq that include military
cooperation. The sources said the cooperation could include Iraqi
intervention in case of Israeli attacks on Syria.
The U.S. message, officials said, is that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud
Barak is under pressure from his military to respond to any Hizbullah
attack. Such an attack on Syria, the officials warned, could be ordered as
Barak seeks reelection and wants to prove his commitment to Israeli
security.
The U.S. warning, officials said, was delivered in two meetings between
administration officials and Syrian diplomats and officials both in Damascus
and in Washington.
On Friday, the New York Times published a column by its foreign affairs
expert, Thomas Friedman that warned Syrian President Bashar Assad that he is
being manipulated by the advisers of his late father. "Bashar, your dad was
a master at manipulating people around him," the columnist warned. "Be
careful that you don't become the puppet of your father's puppets. It will
end badly for you, and even worse for Syria."
A senior Israeli military source said Iraq is ready to launch missile
attacks on the Jewish state to either help Syria or the Palestinians. These
missiles, they said, could be tipped with nonconventional warheads.
"The Iraqis would love to participate in either conflict," the senior
source said. "Hafez Assad [Syria's late president] was not interested in
cooperating with Iraq. Bashar is interested and wants to cooperate."
An Israeli war with Syria, Lebanon and Iraq could drag such U.S. Arab
allies as Egypt and Jordan, the source said.
Sunday, December 3, 2000
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