For Israel, U.S. Response On Syria May Be Harbinger On Iran
TEL AVIV (JTA) —
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In Jerusalem, Washington’s resolve in Syria is seen as a crucial litmus test for its readiness to confront another looming Mideast showdown over unconventional weapons.
“[Syrian President Bashar] Assad’s regime has become a full Iranian client and Syria has become Iran’s testing ground,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday following a meeting with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius. “Now the whole world is watching. Iran is watching and it wants to see what would be the reaction on the use of chemical weapons.”
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The prospect of a nuclear Iran is viewed with much greater concern in Israel, though Obama has declined to establish any similar red lines even as he has sought to assure Israel that he is not making empty threats about preventing Iran’s acquisition of a nuclear weapon.
American action in Syria might be enough to persuade Netanyahu the Americans are serious about Iran, Zisser said. But Netanyahu’s comments at his weekly Cabinet meeting on Sunday suggested that Israel is prepared to take action on its own.
“The most dangerous regimes in the world must not be allowed to possess the most dangerous weapons in the world,” Netanyahu said. “Our finger must always be on the pulse. Ours is a responsible finger and if necessary, it will also be on the trigger.”
Read more: http://www.jta.org/2013/08/26/news-opinion/israel-middle-east/for-israel-u-s-response-on-syria-is-harbinger-on-iran#ixzz2dCjdV43n