A Blog by the Editor of The Middle East Journal

Putting Middle Eastern Events in Cultural and Historical Context

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

The Israeli Strike on Syria

Today's Israeli airstrike along the Syrian-Lebanese border, if (as the leaks are saying) it was aimed at missiles being shipped to Hizbullah, raises a number of questions. Is Syria seeking to escalate in Lebanon as its own civil war goes badly?  Is it seeking to provoke Israel as a distraction from its domestic issues?
Whatever really lies behind the raid, it marks an escalation of tension in a region that is already highly unstable. If it remains merely a surgical strike that took out a specific threat, that's one thing. But any of the parties (Syria, Israel, Hizbullah) could use it as a pretext to escalate an already explosive situation.

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