“Since I took office,” Gallant said, “in the first quarter of 2023 we doubled the rate of attacks in Syria.”
Israel’s current actions in Syria take place in the context of a rapidly shifting regional strategic picture, in which the imperative of facing down an emboldened Iran is becoming both increasingly urgent and increasingly complex.
In his briefing, Gallant outlined a clear strategic perception of developments, at the center of which was the Iranian notion of “unification of the arenas.” This phrase, which occurs frequently in statements by Iranian leaders and in pro-Iran regime propaganda, refers to Tehran’s use of the various proxies and franchises that it has assembled around Israel in a single, coordinated effort.
Israel can no longer assume that an escalation against Gaza will remain confined to a dual contest between Israel and the Hamas authority that rules that area. Similarly, action against Iranian proxies in the West Bank may produce a response from pro-Iran elements in Lebanon; friction over the Temple Mount/al-Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem may lead to a response from Gaza, and so on. READ MORE
