ISRAEL’S STRIKE ON SYRIA WILL INCREASE SUPPORT FOR ASSAD
Beirut, 25 Rabiul Awwal 1434/6 February 2013 (MINA) – A Western diplomat said that the recent Israeli attack in Syria did not achieve its aim and was of no use to the Syrian opposition in its current battle to oust the regime of President Bashar Assad.
During a meeting behind closed doors with Lebanese politicians last week, the diplomat said that attacks instigated by Israel or the U.S. would only increase the popularity of the Syrian regime and provide Assad the opportunity to play the victim, according to Al Bawaba report received by Mi’raj News Agency (MINA) Wednesday (6/2).
He expressed concern that the alliance between Tehran, Damascus and Hezbollah would exploit the Israeli attack to encourage similar attacks on Israeli and Western diplomatic posts in Lebanon.
The diplomat suspected the Israeli attack was a precautionary one, in order to ensure Syrian arms do not fall in the hands of fundamentalist groups fighting with the opposition.
He said that Israel fears these groups will later use these weapons against them in the Golan Heights, as similar incidents took place when confrontations ensued between Israeli soldiers and fundamentalist groups in the Sinai Desert, after the ousting of President Hosni Mubarak in Egypt.
The diplomat expressed fear over the chaotic flow of arms to Syrian opposition groups, because the final destination of those arms is not known.
The decentralized arrangement of the Syrian opposition, who are fighting without a coordinated central command, might result in advanced weapons falling into the hands of groups labeled as “terrorists” by the U.S. and Europe.
The diplomat revealed that Western countries have banned arming Syrian oppositions and are advising several Gulf countries to do the same and provide humanitarian assistance solely. He added that the problem lies in the lack of influence over the businessmen who finance and arm Syrian oppositions.
The Israeli air strike last weekend targeted several sites near Damascus, including a biological weapons research center, which hadn’t previously been mentioned in media.(T/P03/E1)
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
