Overnight, Israel attacked the Syrian port city of Latakia, causing multiple explosions and setting fires around several parts of the city. Details on the attack are just starting to emerge.
Russian Rear Admiral Oleg Zhuravlev offered substantial details on the strikes, saying two Israeli F-16s fired four missiles at the city’s ports. He reported minor material damage to port infrastructure. Two people were reported killed.
As far as the fire is concerned, it appears to have mostly burned shipping containers, with Syrian reporters saying that the fire mostly burned food and medical supplies.
Potentially the most important detail was on the timing of the attack. Syria has substantial air defenses at the port, but was unable to activate them because the Israeli attack came simultaneously with a Russian flight coming into the air base at Hmeimim, just 12 miles away.
Syria wouldn’t dare risk hitting the Russian plane, but the big question is if Israel was aware of its proximity. In recent attacks Israel has used airliners as cover for their attacks, and it would be entirely possible they knew this would keep air defense off them. Israel is refusing comment, but said they won’t let Iran bring in weapons.
Attacks on Latakia alone risk provoking Russia because of how close Hmeimim is. This makes it even more likely Russia will react, and object to the Israeli strikes.
There are no European intellectuals remaining and Russia is between a rock and a hard place. Ukraine is a knife aimed at Russia’s kidney. The timing of the Ukraine coup during the regime change operation in Syria was never a coincidence. Europe still doesn’t understand how terrible this has been to its economy and people. Nuland said the truth, which was heard all over. Europe still didn’t get it and they continue with their foolish support for regime change in Syria. Conclusion: Europe’s neoliberals have total control over Europe and are working diligently to keep Europe distracted and enslaved.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26079957
another war crime by the apartheid regime in Israel
the russian admiral is down playing this for obvious political reasons.
this is a big deal for any struggling Third World country
https://twitter.com/EHSANI221/status/1475885626566270976
Talk is that nearly 2,000 containers belonging to Syrian importers & merchants were also burnt & wiped out during the strike
The goods have been held at the port due to processing delays at #Syria ‘s Central Bank
Well, well. Wonder if Israel had a hand in those convenient delays.
Israel keeps pushing and sooner or later Putin will have had enough, just like he’s had enough with Ukraine. All he has to do is give permission to Syria to use S-300 to start shooting Israeli jets as they take off from their bases, which is quite possible. Shooting them down over Israel will eliminate risks to aircraft inside Syrian air space. Then Putin and Assad can say, “Oh, so sorry! That was a technical mistake on the part of the AD crew.”
When Putin has ‘had enough’ will be a calculated setup leading to some strategic error of action or inaction on his part.
This is high-stakes geopolitical maneuvering; Israel knows how to time pushes and provocations better than most.
As The Saker has pointed out in regard to this incident, Russia has no brief for defending Syria against Israel, especially when the attacks are mostly meaningless and done for Israeli PR value. Russia came to Syria’s aid in 2015 because ISIS and Al Qaeda were threats to Russia as well, nothing more.
I pointed out to him that if Assad were to do as I recommend above, Israel would likely escalate into a war with Syria, which Syria would lose. In that case Syria would be vulnerable to ISIS and Al Qaeda or could turn into a Western puppet that would kick Russia out of Tartarus and Hmeimim, which would not be in Russia’s interest.
There are reasons for Putin not to move precipitously with regard to Israel. But he could tell Israel that Assad is considering using the S-300 to shoot down Israeli jets over Israel or the Med and that Russia would be upset if Israel attacked Syria.
I don’t agree that Putin is making any particular error in this situation. But he could do more. But he’s occupied with Ukraine and NATO at the moment. As long as Israel’s attacks are limited to meaningless PR stunts, I say we cut him some slack.
There’s a glaring internal contradiction in your reasoning.
Losing Syria to the IS/Al Qaeda would be the same as losing Syria to Israel. The IS was a proxy army sponsored by NATO, Israel, and the Gulf States.
Therefore, Russia’s entry into Syria is in effect entering war against Israel’s stake in the IS. What is that stake?
Israel, doesn’t have the capacity to occupy Syria; Lebanon proved the limits of Israel as a colonial force.
Winning a war against Syria, gains Israel little they don’t already have. The odds of Israel alone installing and sustaining a puppet government are slim. They would need help, but this hypothetical war is not a saleable project for U.S. and NATO domestic consumption.
As the IS was clearly incapable of serving as a formal client state to Judeo-Christian forces, this obviously was no generic colour revolution play.
There had to be a greater geopolitical goal; the only one that clicks is using Greater Israel as the foundation of a grand ME colonial conquest, pretexted on Islamic State aggression against Israel.
The IS in and of itself, was not a threat to Russia had they been truly independent and self-sustaining Islamic nationalist radicals. Russia prefers diplomacy over violent conflict.
Russia could not miss that coming to Syria’s aid thwarts a Greater Israel crusade for the Middle East pretexted on the IS threat to Israel.
Putin calculated that the IS would be a useful intervention pretext for Russia as well, taking out NATO’s patsy before NATO could themselves.
Successful IS conquest of Syria and Iraq, opens up the entire Middle East as spoils of war the moment they attack a U.S. ally, and that wasn’t likely going to be Jordan.
Like a Saturday morning cartoon villain, the IS would invade Israel. Without question the full force of NATO would come to the rescue. Cost would be no object.
Russia can’t easily fight that level of all-out war for Syria. Only the pretext, the IS, could be easily defeated.
Israeli terrorism is sour grapes, but has to be tolerated. Iraq is lost, the IS diminished, but Syria still in play.
If there is war for Syria, Israel will have to finally definitively cross that line themselves or by U.S./NATO proxy. It won’t be against a pushover IS, but the SAA and Russian forces.
Israel/U.S./NATO are obviously building towards that as a full-fledged option on the table, but missing the IS pretext and facing Russia gives them pause, and also maddens them.
The same propaganda game is at work in Ukraine; Russia must be saleable as the aggressor. The same problem holds true; Russia is not saleable as an aggressor.
Israel’s strategy and tactics are informally called salami strategy and tactics, tiny escalations that collectively add up without provoking the response they would if initiated in full at once.
Disabling Latakia port would certainly inconvenience Russian-Syrian logistics.
Whether or not that was a primary endgame all along isn’t clear; one opportunity opened, often leads to another under an open salami strategy.
Greater Israel beckons, so near yet so far. The Islamic State almost opened all Syria and Iraq as ‘spoils of war’, as once established they would surely have invaded Israel and been trounced by a NATO/Israeli response.
ISIS was extremely junior to NATO/Israel in the project with Israel even caring for their casualties. ISIS was the perfect ally of the Zionists.
IS were perfectly tailored pawns, yes.
Even the name ISIS is a bit of a giveaway; the Zionists seem to like to mock the old gods and goddesses.
Most of the major Judeo-Christian weapons systems derive names from Pagan myth.
Brilliant. Thank you.