Regime forces shell Homs
AP
The horrific scenario that may materialize in Syria,
with the situation possibly deteriorating to a worst state than what we are seeing now – as well as the possibility that chemical or biological arms or God knows what end up in the wrong hands – is certainly beyond our boundaries.
An Israeli strike could ignite the area – and not only the area beyond our northern border – and it’s not at all certain whether such attack would prevent non-conventional arms from trickling into terrorist hands. In this case, it would be better for others to do the job for us.
Precautions
Ariela Ringel-Hoffman
Op-ed: Israel has right to attack Syria to prevent non-conventional arms from falling into wrong hands
The Middle Eastern reality is managed in line with rules that are wholly different than the ones familiar to the whole world, and one bullet fired from one rifle could ignite the whole region and start a war that would see thousands of Israelis killed.
After all, we are not only dealing with Nasrallah and his colleagues. Iran would be happy to join the party as well and the Jordanians, just like the Egyptians, would not accept an Israeli strike on Syria as a routine matter. Life next to a powder keg comes with a heavy price that is manifested not only at times of war, but also at times when we truly want to declare a preventative war, which is not certain to prevent a future disaster.
The horror taking place under our noses at a neighboring country is not the same as horrors taking place in the Third World or somewhere in Africa. Geopolitics is a strange animal: You can hate and fear your enemy, pray and hope for its downfall, but you cannot remain indifferent to the suffering of a civilian population that lives right next door and is fighting for more than a year now against a ruthless tyrant who enjoys the despicable support of huge powers like China and Russia.
If only it were possible, I would travel to visit the mourning Syrian mothers who lost their tortured children in yet another round of horrific battles and indiscriminate massacres. If it only it were possible, I would hand over food deliveries and help the wounded. If I could only do it, I would propose a plan for bringing in babies and infants through the Israeli border, smuggle in first-aid kits, and provide the hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees with piles of clothes I no longer need.
Had it been possible, I would have done all of that a while ago.