By Nicola Nasser**
The timing of the Israeli air raid
early on January 30 on a Syrian target, that has yet to be identified,
coincided with a hard to refute indications that the "regime change" in Syria
by force, both by foreign military intervention and by internal armed
rebellion, has failed, driving the Syrian opposition in exile to opt
unwillingly for "negotiations" with the ruling regime, with the blessing of the
U.S., EU and Arab League, concluding, in the words of a Deutsche Welle report
on this February 2, that "nearly two years since the revolt began, (Syrian
President Bashar Al-) Assad is still sitting comfortably in presidential
chair."
Nonetheless, Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu keeps saying that Israel is preparing for "dramatic
changes" in Syria, but senior Israeli foreign ministry officials accused him of
"fear-mongering on Syria" to justify his ordering what the Russians described
as the "unprovoked" raid, according to The Times of Israel on January 29. Another
official told the Israeli Maariv that no Israeli "red lines" were crossed with
regard to the reported chemical weapons in
More likely Israel is either
trying to escalate militarily to embroil an unwilling United States in the
Syrian conflict, in a too late attempt to pre-empt a political solution, out of
a belief that the fall of the Al -- Assad regime will serve Israel's strategy,
according to the former head of the Military Intelligence Directorate, (Major
general, reserve) Amos Yaldin, or to establish for itself a seat at any
international negotiating table that might be detrimental in shaping a future
regime in Syria.
Escalating
militarily at a time of political de-escalation of the military solution in
The Israeli military intervention
at this particular timing fuels a Syrian fire that has recently started to look
for firefighters among the growing number of the advocates of dialogue,
negotiations and political solutions both nationally, regionally and
internationally.
The escalating humanitarian crisis and the rising death
toll in
With the legitimate Syrian government gaining the upper
hand militarily on the ground, the inability of the rebels to "liberate" even
one city, town or enough area in the countryside to be declared a "buffer zone"
or to host the self-proclaimed leadership of opposition in exile, which failed
during the Paris -- hosted "Friends of Syria" meeting on January 28 to agree on
a "government -- in -- exile," more likely because of this very reason, the
second option of a political solution is left as the only way forward and as the
only way out of the bloodshed and the snowballing humanitarian crisis.
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