IDF Chief: Israel ready to absorb some Syria refugees once Assad falls
Benny Gantz says expects Bashar Assad's regime to collapse in near future and issue a blow to the Alawite community in Syria; Gantz: Assad is not like Gadhafi, he won't fight till last bullet.
By Jonathan Lis Tags: IDF Syria Bashar Assad HezbollahIsrael Defense Forces Chief of Staff Benny Gantz said Tuesday that Israel is preparing to absorb Alawite refugees once Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime collapses, which he expects to happen in the coming months.
Speaking at a Knesset Defense and Foreign Affairs committee meeting, Gantz said Assad's turmoil could cause him to seek a military confrontation with Israel.
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IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz with Defense Minister Ehud Barak in the Golan Heights. |
| Photo by: Defense Ministry |
"Assad cannot continue holding on to power and his downfall is expected to cause a crack in the radical axis," Gantz said.
"Assad and the Syrian regime may have a hard time acting against us in the short-term, but we also need to take into account that Syria has advanced weapons systems. They have advanced Russian arms such as Yakhont missiles."
The IDF chief said that he was not sure whether the Golan Heights, which border with Syria, will remain quiet in the near future.
"Assad is not the same type as [Former Libyan leader Muammar] Gahdafi, who fights until the last bullet down in the sewer. The day that the Syrian regime will fall, it will issue a blow to the Alawites, and we are preparing to absorb those refugees."
Gantz also discussed other threats the IDF perceives.
“The threat from Lebanon toward Israel has grown on every parameter in the last few years,” Gantz said. “The threats have grown to five times what they were before. It is likely that strategic warfare methods will pass from Syria to Hezbollah.”
Regarding the Gaza Strip and the likelihood of a second Gaza War, Gantz said that “in light of the Israeli deterrence that has been maintained, we must not be misguided by the silence.” Gantz added that the Sinai region is becoming an increasingly hostile terrorist region. “I will act to foil an incident even if that includes the risk of entering a new round of fighting. If I identify that there are abilities being developed, which are accompanied by a danger that will prevent us from acting as we could in the past, these would be necessary actions for maintaining the peace.”
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It seems like the international community has definitely renounced attacking Syria. So Assad can't fall.
With idiots like Gantz, who needs enemies. If a situation room assessment is needed, it is done behind closed doors. And no proposal is done before an enemy dictator falls, much less to his ethnic-religious sector. Ganz Meshugge !
Why does Israel open its big mouth yet again, to give those who hate her the gift to spin this, and crow Israel is meddling in Syria's affairs?! Is Gantz totally insane?! What good do arrogant predictions, and crazy sectarian ones, that Israel would absorb refugees?! And of one sect as opposed to the others?! Is he totally insane?! With IDF chiefs as this, who needs enemies.
LAST thing we need is more Arabs! Where the hell is Netanyahu?
First of all, the Alawite community in Syria are anti-Assad, therefor if Israel is willing to absorb them, it means that Assad is well in control in Syria and what America and the West is telling the rest of the world that Assad is losing grip is all a load of crap and no more than propaganda.
And that's why he is in power. This is an Alawi power and an Alawi army that let him in power. This news is the reason why Assad will prevail. Alawis absolutely do not want going to Israel as refugees, they will stay in control refugees.
.Where else on earth would a country give shelter and hope to it's enemy ? Answer : Nowhere. I am proud to be an Israeli.
Assad has not fallen yet, nor is it clear he would be killed, hanged, arrested; or that Alawites will be persecuted. What good does it bring to Israel, to appear as meddling in Syrian internal affairs, when the entire damn anti-Semitic world would want to invent conspiracy theories? If Gantz believes Asad will fall, and it is important that Knesset members hear it professionally, then do so behind closed doors, without giving ammunition to Israel's enemies. Besides, to absorb people from one ethic sect in favor of others, gets you messed up exactly in the kind of quagmire Israel doesn't need. A grand gesture of total stupidity and no sense of timing and diplomacy. With Gantz, Lieberman and Boogie Ayalon, Israel has three subtle, elegant diplomats-in-chief... one wonders when will Israel ever learn diplomacy. Each and every Israeli politician or high-ranking mouth should go ELSEWHERE, to Europe, and LEARN diplomacy.
Why would there be a need to absorb refues? According to the West Syrians do not like Assad, so once he and his government falls down, Syrians will be happy and stay in Syria. There will be no refugees once that happend if, as according to the West, Syrians indeed hate Assad. Refugees usually are people who have been kicked out of their country or are fleeing the oppressive government in their country. People do not leave once they succeeded in overthrowing their oppressive governments.
I believe that the alawites is the sect of assad's family, so regardless ofthe fact they are pro-Assad or not, they could be at risk when Assad fall.
Theoretically you are right, and there should of been refugees right now by that logic...but others factors include externalities from the downfall of the regime resulting in an unorganized government which may lead to further instability, depletion of goods (possibily by further Hezbollah takeover) and starvation. Again, thats not to say that the Syrian government right now is organized :)
at the hands of blood thirsty Islamists and the Islamic tribe in general. If they fled to Lebannon their fate would be sealed under a Hizbollah run government. Israel would be morally and humanitarily obligated to provide the Alawite's with sancturary.
Forget about how he has armed Hamas, Hezballah and be the best friend of Iran's genocidal, anti-Semitic regime. The final picture is what counts. And Israel should receive selectively those belomging to one sect, not another? Predicting with Chutzpah an outcome Israel has no need to comment on? This is imbecile, not humanitarian.
Why dosn't Israel with all her might offer these people help to win their war against Assad?
to be future spies for israel in the Arab World.
This is an open despate offer for safe heaven to anti-Assad terrorists, which means Assad is gaining ground.
Gantz remains on script but the script is increasingly rendered obsolete by the turn of events. Whoever engineered the "Syrian uprising" forgot to give a script to Assad.
Of course Israel will not take any Alawite refugees or refugees of any kind. This hard line course is softened by talk meant to encourage the Alawites for the moment. In the same way Israel has no plans to make peace but they are willing to talk peace. Talk acts as a cover for action (or lack of action). You don't know much about Israel, do you?
Let these potential refugees go to ARAB nations, NOT Israel. Being anti-Assad does not equate with being pro-Israel! Why create a fifth column in Israel?
This is wishful thinking, Golan Heights is syrian, but I guarantee no alawite will go there. Israel is just attempting to improve its global image.
For an IDF chief of staff to say such things is quite absurd & out of touch with reality! Syrian alawites are much more likely to go to Turkey, where many alawites already reside, Lebanon, Jordan and possibly Iraq.
But look at the major population centers of alawites and how close they are to Israel, and how far they are from Turkey. Once Assad falls they will be butchered, and they will flee.
who have been fighting against Israel for 30 years??? why not Lebanon or Turkey which have large Shia population, but the country that occupy Golan?? and for people that think Assad will run and hide, please do some research on shia Muslim and how willing they are to die for martyrdom.
Arabs, Africans, Filipinos, who is next? who else is welcome to mass migrate to this tiny tiny country that was once the Jewish state?
at least not always, and certainly not in this case.
I live beside Muslims, my co workers are Muslim, my brother in law is married to a Muslim woman, I have never been harassed or bothered, asked to convert, or anything like that, you have no idea the situation of Arab Christians so please stop lying on behalf of us.