Iran may not wait until it has acquired nuclear weapons.
This was the apparent warning Gen. Aviv Kochavi issued about a mounting missile and rocket attack on the Jewish state. Bear in mind that Tehran’s guided-missile strike on Saudi Arabia oil refineries last September. This was possibly a practice mission that might have triggered Gen. Kochavi’s warning to the country, “We are now facing more enemies on more fronts!”
The warning comes against the backdrop of the internal turmoil recently inside Iran. Iranian security forces reportedly killed over 1,500 Iranians in recent rioting. The protestors took to the streets of the soaring cost of living resulting from American sanctions and Ayatollah Khamenei fiscal spending for Iran’s foreign military adventures in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. It is conceivable that Iran may think a clash with Israel could divert the internal unrest and unify the country.
On October 31st, IsraCast presented its evaluation of a mounting confrontation with Iranian military buildup by proxies near or on its borders; Gen. Kochavi has now vindicated this assessment, and there’s more!
Iran plans to “level” Israel from Lebanon
Senior Iranian officer Gen. Morteza Ghorbani let the cat out of the bag. Speaking in Beirut, he openly declared, “If the Zionist regime makes the smallest mistake concerning Iran, we will level Tel Aviv to the ground from Lebanon, without having to launch a single missile from Iran.” Now bear in mind, Gen. Kochavi’s reference to the increasing number of military fronts on Israel’s borders.
The Iranian officer declared, “Today the hearts and spirits of the Iraqi, Yemeni, Lebanese, and Gazan peoples are with Iran.” In other words, the rulers of these countries and the territory of Gaza have been mobilized to join a combined attack against Israel.
However, the Iranian general’s declaration sparked outrage from many Lebanese officials who naturally realized that if Israel were attacked from Lebanese territory, Lebanon would pay a high price. Both Lebanese Sunni Muslims and Christian leaders asked, ‘Why won’t Iran launch its missile strike against Israel from Iran itself or Syria’s Golan Heights?’ (Well, the Iranians are now trying to build a forward launch pad against the Jewish state.)
On the other hand, Sheikh Nassrallah, the leader of Hezbollah (an Iranian proxy), has previously threatened to decimate the city of Haifa, Israel petrol-chemical complex that is closer to Lebanon than Tel Aviv. Was Nassrallah bluffing? The fact that an Iranian general has now issued another stark warning adds credence to Nassrallah’s threat.
The fact is that an all-out Israeli-Lebanese (Hezbollah) war is just what Beirut needs at a time when it is coming apart at the seams with massive rioting over public corruption, sending the economy into a tailspin. It gets worse – in Iraq, there are also demonstrations against Iran’s growing influence on that country. It is fair to say that citizens of Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran itself are paying the price for the aggressive programs of the Shiite regime in Tehran.
Bibi at the brink…
(CC Spokesperson unit of the President of Israel CC BY-SA 3.0)
As expected, Netanyahu has easily defeated Gideon Saar in a primary election for primary leader, but the acting Prime Minister now faces a far greater threat from Israel’s Supreme Court. On January 31st, it will consider whether Netanyahu can legally form a new government in light of the three criminal indictments he now faces. Bear in mind that Israeli voters will again cast their ballots for the third time in under a year on March 2nd. Now, the fun begins.
If the High Court that a candidate facing indictments cannot form a new government, all hell would probably break loose with furious Likudniks hitting the roof and holding massive demonstrations. Netanyahu himself has declared a lacuna in Israeli law on the subject, and the court has no legal right to decide the issue. “In a democracy, who decides who will lead the people, are the people. Otherwise, there is no democracy!” So, Netanyahu has already told his cohorts that if the Supreme Court rules against his being able to form a new government, this will be the end of Israeli democracy – man the barricades!
The other possibility could be that the High Court will wait until after the March 2nd ballot before handing down it’s ruling. In other words, if Bibi loses the election to Benny Gantz of Blue and White, the verdict would be irrelevant. But there is, of course, a huge fly in the ointment – what if Bibi wins and then the Supreme Court disqualifies him from forming a new government? This would also be viewed as a slap in the face by his Likud voters.
The High Court judges are in the unenviable position of damned if they do and damned if they don’t. To add fuel to the flames, the High Court justices have requested A-G Avichai Mandleblit to present his opinion. But, according to some reports, Mandleblit wants to pass the buck up the chain to the Supreme Court.
