srael
Defense Forces chief of staff says Iran involved in all fronts against
Israel • Gantz on Gaza Strip: Hamas, other organizations building up
power • Third Palestinian intifada unlikely, lDF official says.
Israel Defense Forces Chief
of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz tours the Golan Heights on Sunday
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Photo credit: IDF Spokesperson's Unit |
“A storm is brewing underneath the seeming
quiet, night and day and on every front," Israel Defense Forces Chief of
Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz told reporters during a tour of the Golan
Heights on Sunday.
"There is no front where Iran is not involved,
handing out torches to pyromaniacs, with munitions and rockets. These
are tense times. Quiet, but tense."
Commenting on the nuclear negotiations
that world powers are conducting with Iran, Gantz said "a nuclear Iran
is dangerous for the world, the region and Israel -- in that order. I
hope that international pressure on Iran will continue in a way that
keeps Iran from renewing its military nuclear program."
Gantz said the ongoing transfer of weapons
from Syria to Lebanon was "not a good thing" and was a "sensitive
topic," adding that things "could happen" from time to time, a possible
reference to Israeli military action to prevent such transfers.
Gantz called the situation in Syria a "tragic
event, with hundred of civilians being killed every week, simply for
being Syrian citizens." From Israel's side of the border, Gantz
continued, "we try to do whatever we can with humanitarian aid, while
remaining vigilant and prepared."
In the Gaza Strip, "Hamas and the other
organizations are continually building up their strength. They are
becoming stronger and we are becoming more prepared."
Another IDF official said that while there is
potential for an "escalation in the security reality" in Judea and
Samaria, regardless of how the peace talks with the Palestinians
progress, this does not mean there will be a "third intifada."
Meanwhile, as the conflict in Syria continues,
Arab news agencies reported that secular opposition organizations are
not only fighting against President Bashar Assad and his allies
Hezbollah and Iran, but also against extremist Islamic jihadists.
In a car bomb explosion on Sunday in the
northwestern Syrian town of Atma, near the border with Turkey, 15 people
were killed and dozens wounded.
The Global Research website reported that Abdul-Ilah
al-Bashir, the new commander of the Free Syrian Army, received training
in Israel. According to the report, al-Bashir came to Israel last year
for medical treatment after being wounded in fighting in Syria.
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