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Israel seeks to provoke Hezbollah into war by striking Syria: Analyst

Saturday, 18 March 2017 4:03 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 18 March 2017 4:03 PM ]

This file photo shows an Israeli fighter jet.

Israeli warplanes violated Syrian airspace on Friday, striking several targets near the ancient city of Palmyra in the central part of the Arab country. The Syrian army has called the latest Israeli airstrikes “a desperate attempt” to help the Takfiri terrorist group of Daesh. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that the strikes targeted weapons shipments to Hezbollah. He also said in brazen remarks that his regime will continue to conduct military attacks against Hezbollah targets inside Syria.

A Middle East expert believes that the Israelis are very “fearful” of Hezbollah, adding that the Israeli regime wants to provoke the resistance movement into a war by carrying an attack in Syria.

“I think the attack is a provocation but it is understood to be among the Israeli government and its extremists that a war is necessary despite the misunderstanding of the casualties that Hezbollah will inflict on the Israeli state and its citizens,” James Petras told PressTV in an interview on Saturday.

He also noted the Israelis have been working “hand in glove” with the United States and Saudi Arabia in many cases. Therefore, he said, it is very difficult to “disentangle” Israel’s attacks on Syria from the ones carried out by the United States.

The expert further stated Israel is trying to deepen the crisis in Syria in an attempt to divide it into small states which are incapable of defending the rights of their people.

He went on to say what Israel wants is a series of small states in the Middle East which are “absolutely vulnerable” to its aggression and dictates of policy in the region.

According to Petras, the Israelis have always been the “sworn enemy” of the Arab countries, asserting that they have been working with the Daesh terrorist group in order to divide and conquer these states.

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