Why Did Israeli Planes Enter Syria?

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-- Why Did Israeli Planes Enter Syria?

Posted by LazFX on Sep-11-2007 19:59:

Why Did Israeli Planes Enter Syria?

Very interesting article.......

quote:

Monday, Sep. 10, 2007
Why Did Israeli Planes Enter Syria?
By Nicholas Blanford/Beirut

A mysterious incident involving Israeli jets over northern Syria last week has revived fears of war between Israel and Syria, just as months of tension between the bitter foes had appeared to be subsiding. The Israeli government is maintaining a rigid � and uncharacteristic �silence over the affair, which has drawn threats of retaliation from Damascus and a vow to take the matter to the U.N. Security Council. Speculation is rife, but facts elusive, over why Israeli warplanes were over above the arid plains of northern Syria early Thursday. Syria's official news agency last week quoted a Syrian military official saying that Israeli jets had entered Syrian airspace from the Mediterranean, and broke the sound barrier before coming under fire from air defenses. The Israelis, according to this account, had "dropped munitions" over deserted areas before departing. The report did not specify whether the Israelis had bombed any targets. The following day, fuel tanks were discovered inside Turkey near the Syrian border. Other jettisoned tanks were reportedly found inside Syria.

"They dropped bombs over Syria and they dropped fuel tanks on Syrian soil," Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said in Ankara Monday, while briefing Turkish officials on the incident. Turkey, which has strong military and diplomatic ties to Israel, described the overflights as "unacceptable," and has demanded an explanation from the Israeli government.

The Syrians are suggesting that Israel had, albeit discreetly, moved preemptively to reassure Damascus of its intentions before the incident. Muallem told European ambassadors in Damascus at the weekend that last Wednesday � the day before the incursion � he had received a "calming message" from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, sent via a top EU official, according to the Arabic Al-Hayat newspaper. Israeli officials have lately sought to defuse tensions by making clear Israel has no plan to attack Syria and reducing troop numbers near the border. But Muallem told the diplomats that Olmert's message was a "preparation for the penetration of planes into Syrian skies, just hours later," Al-Hayat reported. Israeli aircraft routinely breach Lebanese airspace, in defiance of U.N. resolutions, mainly to monitor the activities of Hizballah, and on rare occasions, usually connected to tensions in Lebanon or the Palestinian territories, they have also entered Syrian skies.

But northern Syria is a long way from the traditional Arab-Israeli front line, suggesting that the mission was of sufficient importance to endanger air crews and risk a serious escalation of tensions with Damascus. Mohammed Raad, a senior Hizballah official, suggested that the overflight was an attempt to "identify an aggressive aerial passage" for an air strike against Iran. Analysts long have pondered the potential flight routes Israeli bombers would take in the event of a decision to target Iran's nuclear sites. Given the limitations of aircraft range, one option would be to fly directly across Jordan and/or Saudi Arabia and through U.S.-patrolled Iraqi skies. Neither the Saudis or the Jordanians would shed tears if Iran's nuclear capability were destroyed in an air strike, but they could not afford to be seen as having granted the Israelis safe passage though their skies.

An alternative would be to follow the Turkish-Syrian border eastward to Iraqi Kurdistan, and then on to Iran. According to John Pike of globalsecurity.org, the many technical and political factors in play make it difficult to predict which route the Israelis might choose. "At this level of technical detail, one starts to get thinking about what sort of weapons would be carried, and what sort of drag this imposes and how that affects combat range," Pike told TIME.

Even if it were not related to a bombing route, the purpose of Israel's unusual air mission last week may yet be related to Iran. In August, Syria reportedly received from Russia the first batch of 50 Pantsyr S1E short-range air defense systems, part of an alleged sale worth almost $1 billion. The deal is said to have been financed by Iran, which reportedly will receive from Syria some of the Pantsyr units and deploy them to protect its nuclear facilities. The recently developed Pantsyr, which its Russian manufacturers claim is immune to jamming, includes surface-to-air missiles and 30mm Gatling guns, providing complete defensive coverage for a range of 11 to 12 miles and 6 miles in altitude. Pantsyr batteries could pose a serious challenge to either an Israeli or a U.S. air strike on Iran. So were the Israeli aircraft playing a perilous game of chicken to assess the capabilities of the Pantsyr system in response to their countermeasures? Some in Syria believe so.

"There seems to be a consensus here that the Israelis were testing Syrian air defense systems," Andrew Tabler, Damascus-based editor of Syria Today, told TIME.

Whatever their purpose, the overflights appear to have dashed hopes of cooling Israeli-Syrian tensions. Having absorbed the lessons of Israel's failure to crush Hizballah during last summer's month-long war, Syria has been building up its military capabilities in recent months, purchasing advanced anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles. Veteran Hizballah instructors have been helping train crack Syrian commando units in guerrilla warfare, according to Lebanese intelligence sources. Syria's growing military confidence has been further bolstered by defense agreements with Iran. Some Israelis worry that Syria, sidelined by the U.S. and Washington's Arab allies in regional peacemaking efforts, could launch a lightning strike against Israel in order to push to the top of the diplomatic agenda its ongoing quest to recover territory captured by Israel in 1967.

Hizballah, meanwhile, has spent the past year frenetically restocking its war-depleted arsenal, preparing new lines of defense and recruiting and training hundreds of eager volunteers in anticipation of a second round with Israel. Commentators in Lebanon and Syria believe that Israel's need to restore its battered military deterrence has heightened the prospect of an attack on Syria. Writing in Monday's Syrian state-run Tishreen newspaper, Ezzieddine Darwish said that the Israeli government is seeking to provoke a war with Syria to "wash away the shame of Israel's defeat in Lebanon". Indeed, many Lebanese, Syrians and Israelis are no longer asking if a war will happen, only when and how.

>>source<<

here we go.....

Posted by hardcore trancer on Sep-12-2007 02:53:

Thanks for the post!! I was gonna post this story a few days ago myself!!!

God knows wtf Israel is thinking these days.I cant tell they are really trying push Iran and Syrias buttons to get some sort of reactions out of them.

Posted by shaolin_Z on Sep-12-2007 06:39:

quote:
Originally posted by hardcore trancer
Thanks for the post!! I was gonna post this story a few days ago myself!!!

God knows wtf Israel is thinking these days.I cant tell they are really trying push Iran and Syrias buttons to get some sort of reactions out of them.

The United States of Amer.. AIPAC is conducting proxy wars on behalf of it's proponderant foreign policy script writer. Take note of the number of NeoCons who are Zionist and/or Zionist sypathisers (which is an understatement!); the over whelming majority, two of the most obvious douche bags being Richard Pearl and Paul Wolfowitz. Dick Cheneys comments at the

quote:
Remarks by Vice President Cheney to the Republican Jewish Coalition Leadership

Sat Mar 24, 9:38 PM ET

To: FOREIGN EDITORS

Contact: White House Press Office, +1-202-456-2580

WASHINGTON, March 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a transcript of remarks by Vice President Cheney to the Republican Jewish Coalition Leadership:
Manalapan, Florida 6:52 P.M. EDT

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. (Applause.) Well, it's great to be with you. And, Mel, I appreciate that kind introduction. A little short. (Laughter.) A warm reception like that almost makes me want to run for office again. (Applause.) Almost, almost. (Applause.)

But I want to thank your fine chairman, David Flaum, and all of you for being here this evening. And I have many great friends in the room. And I'm deeply grateful for the tremendous strength and support and encouragement that you've provided over the years. And I also want to bring you good wishes from the President of the United States, George W. Bush. (Applause.)

...

That leads me to the fourth, and the cruelest, myth -- and that is the false hope that we can abandon the effort in Iraq without serious consequences to our interests in the broader Middle East. The reality is that, if our coalition withdrew before Iraqis could defend themselves, radical factions would battle for dominance in that country. The violence would spread throughout the country, and be very difficult to contain. Having tasted victory in Iraq, jihadists would look for new missions. Many would head for Afghanistan and fight alongside the Taliban. Others would set out for capitals across the Middle East, spreading more sorrow and discord as they eliminate dissenters and work to undermine moderate governments. Still others would find their targets and victims in other countries on other continents.

We must consider, as well, just what a precipitous withdrawal would mean to our other efforts in the war on terror, to our interests in the broader Middle East, and to Israel. What would it tell the world if we left high and dry those millions of people who have counted on the United States to keep its commitments? What would it say to leaders like President Karzai and President Musharraf, who risk their lives every day as fearless allies in the war on terror? Commentators enjoy pointing out mistakes through 20/20 hindsight. But the biggest mistake of all can be seen in advance: A sudden withdrawal of our coalition would dissipate much of the effort that has gone into fighting the global war on terror, and result in chaos and mounting danger. And for the sake of our own security, we will not stand by and let it happen. (Applause.)

...

SOURCE White House Press Office

-0-

Copyright � 2007 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved.

Interestingly enough the original yahoo news link is gone: http://www.tranceaddict.com/forums/...6&pagenumber=23

Here's a quick little video you can watch if you doubt the obvious influence of AIPAC in formulating US foreign policy.

The Israel lobby - The influence of AIPAC on US Foreign Policy

Forget the billion of dollar of financial and military aid at the expense of the American tax payer, just check out how much Israel can get away with; an unsuccesful false flag on the USS libery during the 6 days war is overlooked as if nothing had happened, and act of agression (and a war crime) that would normally result in any other country being reduced to rubble:

Israel's foiled false flag on the USS libery, by the crew onboard.

Loss of Liberty

Anyone who's bothered researching Zionism is well aware of the extremem elements who wish Israel to strech from "the river to the nile." Keeping in Israel persistant expantionalist policy in mind, that seems like a plausible ultimate goal. The US destabalizing the reigion has several other obvious strategic advantages for Israel too. Weaken states opposed to Israel and it's expansionist policy, prevent them from gaining a strong foot in the region and Israel can do whatever the fuck it likes, not that it doesn't do that already. Obviously US foreign policy is multifaceted, and several parties and pricate interests benefit from it. Israel obviously has the a lot to gain from it. It also sets a precedant for more bullshit state sponsored terrorism carried out in the name of the "war of terrorism." Two other things beyond debate are the Zionist dominated NeoConservatives that dominated Washington along with AIPAC influence well before they were even in office and other positions of power (like the intelligence agencies for example).

Israel's provocations make all this a little too obvious for anyone with half brain who isn't brainwashed with a holocaust guilt and baseless superficial accusation of antisemitism against any critics of the state of Israel. Luckily, crying wolf is loosing it impact gradually (sadly again at the expense of real Jewish interests as opposed to the Zionist fraud). The onyl ones paying the price for all this madness will ofcourse be regular Jews (in and outside Israel), Israelis who don't want this BS, Palestinians, Syrians, and the Arab world in general. Hala'fuckin'luyah eh?

Posted by LazFX on Sep-12-2007 08:35:

The Israel lobby - The influence of AIPAC on US Foreign Policy

interesting info...... it raises several more questions I have had on the blind rabid support for Israel....

Posted by shaolin_Z on Sep-12-2007 08:44:

quote:
Originally posted by LazFX
The Israel lobby - The influence of AIPAC on US Foreign Policy

interesting info...... it raises several more questions I have had on the blind rabid support for Israel....

No worries man . I heard Sasha will be spinnign at sky soon .

Posted by The Arbiter on Sep-12-2007 08:54:

I heard they bombed somthing in Syria because they were supplying militant's with weapons.

Posted by Epicurus on Sep-12-2007 15:26:

There's all sorts of (mis)information out there about this incident that differs in content.

Israeli media (Haaretz, Jpost, Yedioth) are reporting that the IAF spotted "nuclear sites" in Syria in their "reconnaissance" flights. Arab-Israeli media (Al-Sinara) is reporting that the IAF struck an Iranian-funded missile base and destroyed it. CNN (Christiane Amanpour) is reporting that the IAF struck a weapons convoy destined for Hizballah and that ground troops may have been involved. Lebanese media (al-Mustaqbal, An-Nahar) are reporting that since the "strike", communication (cell-phones etc) across Lebanon has been jammed, (suggesting that a communications tower may have been hit). Syrian media are reporting that no material damage whatsoever occured, but that empty Israeli fuel tanks have reportedly been found in Turkey after the overflights.

Your guess is as good as mine.

Posted by Epicurus on Sep-15-2007 17:16:

He's some more (mis)information to add to the basket of evidence: Turkey, according to Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Jarida, gave Israel intelligence on Syria to target whatever it was they targeted (click here).

Edit: More (mis)info. According to the Washington Post, Israel may have targeted nuclear material shipments coming in from North Korea (click here)

Posted by CHRles on Sep-16-2007 23:08:

Israel is cleverly keeping quiet about this all of this, but it's pretty easy to see Syria was in no way innocent. The US has tied North Korea and Syria together as far as plotting to develop nuclear weapons:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070915...1dVg8oJRloLewgF

Whoops, what do you know

In related news, the French government is getting fed up with the diplomatic front on Iran, and warning of an imminent war:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6997935.stm

The French are begining to echo American sentiments.
Iran's supreme chicken, I mean leader, as always used his power to spew hate rhetorics as a response:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6995000.stm

So Bush should go on trial for what's been going on in Iraq, but the leaders of Iran shouldn't? Rightttttt....

Posted by DJ Shibby on Sep-17-2007 00:58:

Posted by hardcore trancer on Sep-17-2007 01:59:

quote:
Originally posted by CHRles
Israel is cleverly keeping quiet about this all of this, but it's pretty easy to see Syria was in no way innocent. The US has tied North Korea and Syria together as far as plotting to develop nuclear weapons:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070915...1dVg8oJRloLewgF

Right I mean all this is coming once again from the U.S and we all know how reliable they are when it comes to these things,after all they were right about Iraq's relations with Al Quada and the WMD and the fact that they were behind 911.

quote:
In related news, the French government is getting fed up with the diplomatic front on Iran, and warning of an imminent war:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6997935.stm

Perfect as if Bush's insanity wasnt enough in this world we have another leader joining him too.

quote:
Iran's supreme chicken, I mean leader, as always used his power to spew hate rhetorics as a response:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6995000.stm

and whats wrong with what he said?alot of people including the American people believe that Bush should go to the international court and face all kinds of charges.

quote:
So Bush should go on trial for what's been going on in Iraq, but the leaders of Iran shouldn't? Rightttttt....

and why should the leaders of Iran be tried?when was the last time they invaded another nation?or are you saying they should be tried because they offended Israel?