The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) has published a report which suggests Israelis are very concerned about the potential spillover of the Syrian crisis into the occupied territories.
“Concerned about the possible drift of al-Qaeda affiliates to areas adjacent to the Golan Heights border, Israel finds itself obliged to increase its assistance to local rebel militias in southern Syria,” writes Ehud Yaari, an Israeli analysts at WINEP.
Israel initially opted to remove itself from the bloody quagmire in Syria. Yet Israeli concerns about the war's consequences have been aggravated by the emergence of al-Qaeda affiliates and other radical Islamist militias, which have gained preeminence among rebel units in many parts of central and northern Syria,” the report said.
Yaari, who works as a commentator for Israel's Channel Two television, also elaborates on the form of Israeli assistance to the terrorists fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
“Military commanders have the last word in other parts of the country, but southern militias are often directed by civilian elders. Many of them have come to view Israel as a temporary ally under the present circumstances. Emboldened by their belief that the Israel Defense Forces will indirectly protect their back, these militias have battled troops from the Assad regime's 90th and 61st Brigades,” the report added.
Assad's main interest in the south is to ensure the safety of the main highway between Damascus and Deraa and maintain a hold over parts of the latter city. He has also ordered his generals to retain Quneitra, the capital of the district bordering Israel, as well as the stretch of Druze villages to the north along the eastern slopes of Mount Hermon. So far, the government has managed to achieve these goals and does not seem worried about losing its grip on the rest of the region, which has little strategic significance for the outcome of the current struggle.
MNA
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