GNITN - Special Edition

Israel At War Day 651

Israel Is Ready

Iran 2.0 Coming

According to a report from World Israel News a second attack on Iran could happen soon:

The United States and Israel have both deliberated on the possibility of launching new airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities should Tehran attempt to rebuild its uranium enrichment capabilities, two American officials say.

One source referred to another attack as mowing the lawn. What it means if Iran’s nuclear program was cut down if it starts to grow back, it has to be mowed again. However how much of the program is left is up for debate:

Ever since American B-2 stealth bombers carried out a series of airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan on June 22nd, President Donald Trump has claimed the nuclear sites were “obliterated,” emphasizing that Iran’s nuclear program had been effectively neutralized. Initial assessments have varied, however, casting doubt on the president’s insistence that all three facilities suffered catastrophic damage.

One site people agree was destroyed:

Five current and former US officials cited in a new report by NBC News say that the latest American intelligence assessments suggest that the Fordo site, deemed to be the most difficult to target due to its position underneath the side of a mountain, was indeed destroyed in the American attack.

The two other sites were not completely destroyed though:

However, the assessment also estimates that Natanz and Isfahan suffered only partial damage and could potentially be made operational again within a matter of months.

Apparently the first attack could have been more expansive:

The report said that three of the officials – two former, one current – said that US Central Command had drafted plans for a more expansive set of airstrikes against Iran’s nuclear program, hitting six nuclear sites rather than three. The operation would have lasted several weeks, as opposed to the one-night Operation Midnight Hammer carried out by the US Air Force. President Trump was reportedly briefed on the alternative plan, but decided against the broader air campaign, favoring a quick, narrowly defined operation.

Internally both Israel and America are considering hitting Isfahan and Natanz again:

Following the operation, both the Israeli and American governments have held deliberations on whether to carry out new strikes on Isfahan and Natanz to ensure they cannot be rebuilt and used to reconstitute Iran’s nuclear program.

But that report is disputed by the US leadership:

Both the White House and the Pentagon responded to the report by reiterating the president’s claims regarding the level of destruction at all three sites.

“As the President has said and experts have verified, Operation Midnight Hammer totally obliterated Iran’s nuclear capabilities,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said.

And yet if Iran can actually get to the enriched uranium under the rubble another strike could be needed.

Netanyahu’s Syria Strategy

We read in an article from the Jewish News Syndicate that Prime Minister Netanyahu has goals for the fighting in Syria:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu clarified Israel’s two-pronged strategic goal in Syria on Thursday—ensuring southern Syria is demilitarized and protecting the Druze of that region.

The PM further explained the buffer zone Israel wants which also includes where the Druze live:

Netanyahu defined southern Syria as an area running from the Golan Heights to Jabal al-Druze, a region encompassing nearly all of the Sweida governorate, recently the site of massacres perpetrated by regime-linked Syrian forces against the Druze community.

The Syrian army crossed into that area:

The Syrian regime violated both red lines, Netanyahu said. “It sent troops south of Damascus into an area that was supposed to remain demilitarized, and it began massacring Druze. That was something we could not accept under any circumstances.

Netanyahu was resolute in his response and a truce with Syria resulted:

“Therefore, I instructed the IDF to act—and to act with force. The Air Force struck both the murderous militias and the armored vehicles. I also added a target—to strike the Ministry of Defense in Damascus,” he said. The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday attacked the entrance to the Syrian regime’s military headquarters in the Damascus area in response to atrocities against Druze civilians.

“As a result of this intensified action, a ceasefire was established, and the Syrian forces withdrew back to Damascus,” the prime minister said. “This will continue to be our policy—we will not allow military forces to move south of Damascus, and we will not allow harm to come to the Druze in Jabal al-Druze.”

The Druze asked for military help as well:

Netanyahu said that the spiritual leader of the Druze community in Israel, Sheikh Mowafaq Tarif, reached out to him, saying: “During the Holocaust, when they were slaughtering you, the Jews, you called for help—and no one came. Today, they are slaughtering us, the Druze, and we are calling for help from the State of Israel.”

The Israel Defense Force did indeed act:

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said on Wednesday evening that Israel’s military was “acting with determination” to prevent dangerous elements from establishing a presence near the border, to protect Israel’s citizens, and to prevent harm to Syria’s Druze. Israeli Air Force fighters struck tanks, rocket launchers, combat equipment and pickups armed with heavy machine guns making their way to the Sweida area over the past 24 hours, the IDF announced on Wednesday.

The Israel Defense Minister warned Syria to leave the area and stay out:

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that IDF strikes on Syrian regime forces near Sweida would intensify if threats to the Druze population persist.

“The Syrian regime must leave the Druze in Sweida alone and withdraw its forces,” he said. He emphasized that Israel would not abandon the Druze community and enforce its disarmament policy in the area.

Hopefully Syria got the message. If not, Israel knows what they will do next.