Just a comment on this:
The Associated Press reported Wednesday, citing two unnamed U.S. officials, that the discussion between the two leaders “grew tense” over Israeli concerns that a U.S. withdrawal from Syria will allow Iran to increase its influence there.
I think, Israel is using Iran as an excuse? What the State of Israel is really worried about, considering the Syrian Army and Russia are mopping up most of the terrorist around Damascus, the next target is the Golan Heights?
Back on 09/10/2017, an elite Syrian Brigade was sent to the Damascus-Golan Heights border.
Elite Syrian Army brigade shifts focus to Golan Heights
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/elite-syrian-army-brigade-shifts-focus-golan-heights/
The elite 42nd Brigade (Ghiath Forces) of the 4th Mechanized Division were recently deployed from the eastern suburbs of Damascus to the Damascus-Golan Heights border.
According to a military source in Damascus, most of the Syrian Army’s 42nd Brigade was moved out of the Jobar suburb in east Damascus to the Beit Jinn pocket at the border of the Golan Heights.
Since their recent deployment to the Beit Jinn pocket, the Syrian Army’s 42nd Brigade has retaken several areas, including much of the northern farms and hilltops.
The 42nd Brigade has played an imperative role in the battle of Damascus these last 24 months, as their forces were responsible for capturing Darayya, Khan Al-Sheih, and Qaboun.
February 13th, 2018 - Israel Preps for Syrian War with Golan’s Oil and Water in its Sights
The Match is Lit: Israel Preps for Syrian War with Golan’s Oil and Water in its Sights
OLAN HEIGHTS – Soon after Saturday’s dangerous escalation involving Syria’s downing of an Israeli fighter jet in its airspace seemed to fizzle out, the
Jerusalem Post reported that Israel was approaching the de-escalation period as a time to prepare for large-scale war with its northern neighbor by boosting its air defenses. According to those cited by the
Post, convoys of missile-defense batteries have been relocated to the Israeli-Arab city of Baka al-Gharbiya and numerous other batteries have been sighted on highways throughout northern Israel.
While the deployment of air defenses to the country’s north seems to forebode an imminent conflict, some experts, like Ofer Zalzberg of the International Crisis Group think tank, have asserted that the recent escalation between Syria and Israel will remain contained, despite Israel’s apparent preparations for a large-scale conflict. “I think this incident is more likely to be contained because fundamentally it is a gradual attempt to renegotiate the so-called rules of the game,” Zalzberg
told AFP, further suggesting that Russia should mediate in order to prevent the weekend’s events from sparking a regional war. Russia, for its part, seemed eager to halt the hostilities, as it urged the need to “avoid any measure that could lead to a dangerous escalation.”
Indeed, any escalation that would lead to a state of open conflict between Syria and Israel would surely spread, quickly involving Syrian allies including Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah and, potentially, more powerful nations like the United States and Russia.
Even if recent events fail to translate into a war between Israel and its northern neighbors, any attempts to prevent such a war – no matter how “successful” they may seem – will only be temporary at best.
Israel, even prior to its establishment as a state in 1948, has been ever eager to annex southern Syria in order to gain access to key resources – first, fresh water and now, oil. It is this same desire that continues to motivate Israel’s aggression against its neighbors.
As Syria will not relinquish what is theirs as long as their sovereignty remains intact, Israel has sought to take such prizes through a variety of tactics ranging from illegal occupation to fomenting covert regime-change efforts. As those efforts have continued to fail, Israel has grown more and more desperate to lay claim to those resources that lie just beyond its reach. Unless Israel relinquishes its desire for its neighbor’s resources, the next war is inevitable.