An article published by the American Newsweek magazine asserts that "between Russia's departure from Syria, the Lebanon crisis, and the latest obstacle in the nuclear negotiations with Iran, Israel may have a short opportunity to significantly reduce the Iranian threat in Syria and the infrastructure to produce precision-guided missiles by Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The article written for the magazine, Jacob Nagel, the national security adviser to former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Jonathan Schanzer of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in Washington made it clear that all eyes are now on Syria.
He adds that the war in Ukraine prompted Russia to redeploy some forces and equipment outside Syria, where it was supporting the besieged Bashar al-Assad regime, noting that with the departure of the Russians, the Iranians want to fill the void.
Iran in Syria
He noted that the Syrian-Israeli border, as well as the main bases and facilities in Syria, have witnessed major clashes in recent years.
Meanwhile, Iran continues to build its capabilities in Syria to target Israel from this war-torn region, but the Israelis are determined not to let that happen.
The magazine says that Israel is working against Iran's smuggling of "game-changing weapons, which is a euphemism for precision-guided munitions," stressing that "Israel is tracking the parts of these munitions, production machines, and anything else that may contribute to their production in the future."
The authors added that Russia's exit from Syria now constitutes a danger and an opportunity for Israel.
Without the Russians and their advanced air defense systems, the Israeli Air Force would have greater freedom of maneuver.
They reported that the number of Israeli operations in Syria has already increased since the start of the Ukrainian war and is likely to intensify.
Israeli training
Last week, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz revealed the details of the largest exercises of the Israeli forces in recent years.
The exercises included simulating air strikes on Iran and simulating a multi-front war against Iranian-backed proxies in Syria, Lebanon and Gaza.
The message was clear: The Israeli government is weighing its military options, and the army is ready for whatever the government decides.
The authors stated that the Assad regime, which would have lost its power had it not been for Iranian and Russian intervention, may welcome the intensification of the Israeli campaign, because Iran has overstayed its welcome in Syria, violated the country's sovereignty and impeded its diplomatic relations with the Arab world, and added that many pragmatic Arab countries support getting rid of the Iranian forces leave Syria in an attempt to stabilize the region after years of turmoil.
The war against Hezbollah is the war Israel has long avoided to prevent widespread damage, they said, and it would be much worse for Lebanon, which is currently teetering in political and economic crises.
Hezbollah knows that a devastating war in Lebanon will damage its image, not to mention its capabilities.
They noted that if the United States signed the nuclear deal with Iran, the massive sanctions relief that Tehran would receive would be a boon to Iran's military efforts.