Report: MI chief meets Pentagon officials

US-based website reports arrival of Israel's Maj-Gen. Aviv Kochavi in Washington for covert meetings with Joint Chief's of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey, other governmental officials

Ynet|Published: 01.30.13 , 15:20

The US-based Al-Monitor reported Tuesday that IDF Intelligence Chief Maj-Gen. Aviv Kochavi traveled to Washington for closed-door consultations with American officials at the Pentagon.

According to the report, Kochavi met at the Pentagon with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey and other officials. The website stated that Israeli officials would not comment on the matter.

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IAF Chief Maj.-Gen. Amir Eshel, referred for the first time since the onset of the current wave of tension opposite Syria, to Syrian President Bashar Assad's weapons arsenal.

According to Eshel, "Syria is undergoing tectonic changes. Given its massive arsenals, Israel may find itself dealing with nonconventional weapons on its borders."

"Our region is going through dramatic changes. Government rise and fall and terror groups are using the vacuum to bolster their operation on our border in a manner we haven't seen in years," he said.

"We have to deal with a broad spectrum of threats – from the conventional to the unconventional, ranging from knives to nuclear weapons – near and far." Our range of activity has relatively greatly increased over the past decade," said Eshel.

His comments corresponded to declarations made by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who clarified just a few days ago that "the weapons in Syria are not awaiting the formation of our government."

According to Netanyahu, "We need to look around us – what is going on in Iran and its proxies and what is happening in other areas, WMD in Syria. The Middle East is not waiting for the election results and is not on hold during the formation of a government," said Netanyahu.