Global Research

Another brutal war in the Middle East between Israel and Hezbollah is inevitable. Hezbollah remains a difficult adversary to defeat for Israel’s expansionist plans in the Middle East which is the ultimate goal. An important article published by Global Research in 2013 “Greater Israel”: The Zionist Plan for the Middle East” detailed Oded Yinon’s plan “A Strategy for Israel in the Nineteen Eighties” translated by Israel Shahak outlines what Israel needed to do to become an imperial power in the Middle East:

The plan operates on two essential premises. To survive, Israel must 1) become an imperial regional power, and 2) must effect the division of the whole area into small states by the dissolution of all existing Arab states. Small here will depend on the ethnic or sectarian composition of each state. Consequently, the Zionist hope is that sectarian-based states become Israel’s satellites and, ironically, its source of moral legitimation.

There are several obstacles preventing Israel ‘s long-term plan to become a regional power including the Palestinians, Syria, Lebanon and the grand prize, Iran. Iran is a major obstacle for Israel, however, in order for Israel to declare war on Iran (with U.S. backing of course), Hezbollah needs to be eliminated. It is an extremely difficult task for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to fight on multiple fronts, especially against a well-armed militia located on its northern borders with Lebanon. In 2006, as the world knows, Hezbollah defeated Israel. During the war, The New York Timesinterviewed an Israeli soldier at the height of the conflict and admitted that Hezbollah fighters as “highly qualified”:

Hezbollah is a militia trained like an army and equipped like a state, and its fighters “are nothing like Hamas or the Palestinians,” said a soldier who just returned from Lebanon. “They are trained and highly qualified,” he said, equipped with flak jackets, night-vision goggles, good communications and sometimes Israeli uniforms and ammunition. “All of us were kind of surprised”

Last April, Israel introduced to the world, David’s Sling, a US-Israeli missile interceptor made to counter Hezbollah’s arsenal of medium-range missiles. It is a clear sign that Israel is in preparation for the next long war against Hezbollah, who is an ally of Syria and Iran. The Independent, a London-based news source described ‘David’s Sling’ as follows:

David’s Sling, meant to counter medium-range missiles possessed by Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, officially became operational at the ceremony, the military said.  It marks the completion of the multi-tier system that includes the Arrow, designed to intercept long-range ballistic missiles in the stratosphere with an eye on Iran, and Iron Dome, which defends against short-range rockets from Gaza

A 10-day drill now taking place in Israel which is lead by the IDF. Haaretz reported on what the exercises’ entailed:

Israel’s army will be commencing its largest drill in 20 years in the north of the country on Tuesday, one that will encompass all forces: ground, air, sea and intelligence. The drill, which will be overseen by Israel Defense Forces’ Northern Command, is expected to last about 10 days.

It will include a scenario of instant escalation, in which the army has to defend Israel against multiple terrorist infiltrations in the north. For instance, one scenario has “terrorists” entering moshav Shavei Tzion, 15 kilometers from the Lebanese border, from the sea, while “Hezbollah” forces stage an attack by Gesher Benot Yaakov in the Golan Heights (and a famous prehistoric archaeological site). The army will also be practicing an attack on Lebanon and the evacuation of Israeli towns by the border in preparation for the eventuality of heavy missile attacks. It will include a scenario of instant escalation, in which the army has to defend Israel against multiple terrorist infiltrations in the north

It is a sign that Israel plans to eliminate Hezbollah, once and for all. According to the Haaretz report:

“The purpose of the drill is to test the fitness of the Northern Command and the relevant battalions during an emergency,” said a top IDF officer. In the drill scenario, the cabinet tells the armed forces to vanquish Hezbollah – “as I understand it, the state in which Hezbollah either has no ability or desire to attack anymore,” explained the officer”

Back in 2016, Haaretz first reported that Israel planned an evacuation involving more than 78,000 Israeli civilians in order to protect them against incoming missiles fired by Hezbollah in the event of an actual war. Make no mistake, the next war will between Israel and Hezbollah will be catastrophic. A nightmare for civilians on both sides of the conflict.

Hezbollah is an Obstacle, Destroying Iran is the Goal

The former deputy chief of IDF staff Maj.-Gen. Yair Golan spoke at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP), a think tank based in Washington, D.C. and said:

For Israel, Iran is “much more threatening compared to the Daesh threat,” Golan asserted, using the Arabic acronym for ISIS, “because the Iranians are sophisticated, they are a higher form of civilization, they have a nice academic infrastructure, nice industry, good scientists, many talented young people. They are very similar to us,” he said. “And because they are similar to us, they are much, much more dangerous”

Iran is more dangerous than ISIS or Al-Qaeda? In fact, as we already know, ISIS has been funded and armed by the U.S., Israel and Saudi Arabia to destabilize and eventually to impose “regime change” in the Middle East as in the case of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad which ultimately failed. However, for Israel, destabilizing and eventually destroying Iran would be an ideal scenario. Israel’s vision for the Middle East is hegemony among its Arab neighbors. Iran plays an important role within the Middle East when it comes to economics and geopolitics, therefore it’s in Israel’s best interest to divide, conquer and even colonize Arab states along ethnic and sectarian lines.

Israel, America’s bulldog in the Middle East must face a major obstacle, and that obstacle is Hezbollah if it wants to become an Imperial power. War with Iran won’t happen anytime soon because Israel needs to permanently destroy and neutralize Hezbollah and even Syria before they take the next step against Iran. I believe the Israeli government under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Likud Party is psychotic enough to use their nuclear weapons to essentially destroy Iran. Would the Trump administration allow Israel to carry out such an attack? With Trump’s love for Israel as he stated in a 2016 speech at an American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) event, I believe he definitely would. Let’s hope world powers such as Russia and China can prevent such a war. The coming war between Israel and Hezbollah will be much worse than the last war in 2006, because Israeli officials see this as an open opportunity (especially with a staunch ally in President Donald Trump) to attack Hezbollah with everything in its arsenal. Hezbollah is prepared for the next long war with Israel as well. It will take center stage once it begins. A war with Iran won’t happen anytime soon as long as Hezbollah exists, making Israel’s imperial agenda only a dream that may not come true after all.

This article was originally published by Silent Crow News where the featured image was sourced.