Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
Photo: Gil Yohanan
Israel watches Syria
Security officials to present National Security Cabinet with findings of surveys of goings on in north, actions by Hizbullah in Syria, Lebanon
The National Security Cabinet will meet on Wednesday morning to discuss surveys of Hizbullah’s actions in Syria and Lebanon, and its connection with Iran.
The surveys will be presented by Mossad officials, National Security Cabinet officials, IDF Intelligence officials, and other security officials.
Senior officials said that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert intended on allowing Cabinet ministers the opportunity to thoroughly study the events taking place at the northern border.
The Cabinet members will be briefed about Syria’s military acquisitions, and the development of its defense in the Golan.
The security officials scheduled to speak before the Cabinet members all estimate that Syria is only capable of making declarations regarding peace at the moment.
None of the officials will present any conclusive information about whether the recently re-elected Syrian president, Bashar Assad, truly intends on reaching a peace agreement with Israel.
According to diplomatic sources, Olmert fears a misunderstanding of Israel’s intentions could lead to a military reaction by Syria. The prime minister emphasized that Israel did not want to be dragged into a war.
For this reason, Olmert will demand that his ministers not get swept up in the whirlwind of incessant “babble” about a possible war, or negotiations for peace.
Instead, Olmert will ask the ministers to allow the political echelon to conclude its surveys of the Syrian front, without making statements that could undermine the already fragile connection between the countries.
