Special to WorldTribune.com

WASHINGTON — Israel has been alarmed by what officials determined
were leaks by the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama of purported
Israeli preparations to attack Iran.

A leading U.S. analyst who returned from talks with the Israeli
leadership reported that the Obama administration was accused of staging a
campaign to undermine Israel. The analyst, Robert Satloff, said Washington
was also blaming Israel for the rise in global crude oil prices, deemed as
harming the U.S. economy.

“I cannot underscore how deep and visceral the [Israeli] comments of the leaking that came out of Washington were,” Satloff, executive director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said.

In late March, several reports were published by leading American newspapers and journals [including Foreign Policy: Israel-Azerbaijan ties could expedite Iran strike] that questioned Israel’s military capability. One report asserted that Israel was developing a strategic relationship with Azerbaijan to pave the way for air strikes on Iran. On March 31, a U.S. official told the Israeli news web site, Ynet, that the administration was not responsible for the story on Azerbaijan.

“The United States is leaking information to the media in order to avert
an Israeli strike in Iran,” Israeli military analyst Ron Ben-Yishai said.

“It is blatantly clear that reports in the past week alone have caused
Israel substantive diplomatic damage, and possibly even military and
operational damage.”

For his part, Satloff, who met “virtually everybody in the Iran debate,”
said the Israeli leadership also saw the administration as blaming Israel
for the sharp rise in U.S. gasoline prices. He said Washington attributed
the higher prices to “Israel’s posturing” on Iran.

“They think the Iranians should be held responsible for the higher
gasoline prices,” Satloff said.

In an address to the institute on March 27, Satloff referred to Obama’s
meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in early March.
During the Netanyahu visit to Washington, Obama asserted that Israel was
justified in taking decisions to ensure its defense in face of Iran’s
nuclear threat.

“Real deep [Israeli] consternation at the highest level at what they saw
after the prime minister’s visit to Washington as leaks that came out of the
capital designed to undercut the president’s commitment to the right of Israeli
independent sovereign action,” Satloff said.

  Azerbaijan, Barack Obama, Benjamin Netanyahu, blaming Israel for rising gas prices, Israelis blame administration leaks for ‘diplomatic, military and even operational damage’, Robert Satloff, Ron Ben-Yishai, Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Ynet