Israeli press: US allowed military operation in Rafah in exchange for limited response to Iran's attack
The US authorities could allow Israel to carry out a plan to conduct a military operation against the Hamas movement in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip in exchange for the Israeli government's refusal of a large-scale response to Iran for its missile strikes. The Israeli publication Haaretz writes about this, citing an Egyptian source.
Israel had been planning the operation in Rafah for a long time, but until recently the US administration was categorically against carrying out this operation. As a result, the Israeli government even had to announce its abandonment of the operation.
But then circumstances changed. In response to the attack on the Iranian consulate in the Syrian capital Damascus, Tehran launched massive attacks on Israeli territory using unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles.
Now the US authorities, fearing a further escalation of the situation in the Middle East and a large-scale war, are demanding that Israel respond to Iran in a “limited manner”. In exchange, Washington is ready to agree to conduct an operation by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in the Palestinian city of Rafah. It is likely that Israel agreed with this kind of “exchange”.
At least there has not yet been a powerful blow to Iran. It is now more important for Israel to completely destroy the combat potential of Hamas in the Gaza Strip in order to avoid its restoration and new attacks on its territories. Therefore, the Israeli government may give in to American demands when it comes to responding to Iran.
As for the response to Iran, Israel can now reduce it to “softer” forms. For example, sources of the Israeli publication claim that a cyber attack on Iranian military and government infrastructure could be organized.
In addition, attacks could be launched against Iranian officials outside Iran, primarily against high-ranking military officials of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Syria or Iraq. Facilities of Iranian “proxies” in Iraq, Syria or Lebanon may also be attacked. But Israel may for now abandon the idea of striking targets on Iranian territory, including nuclear infrastructure.
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