Fire bombed -- Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne, Australia, targeted in an arson attack

From: The Australian December 6, 2024
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu points finger at the Australian Labor Government over synagogue firebombing

Labor’s ‘extreme anti-Israel position’ is to blame for the firebombing of a Melbourne synagogue and increasing antisemitism throughout Australia, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has said in an extraordinary intervention.

Netanyahu on X:
“The burning of the Adass Israel synagogue in Melbourne is an abhorrent act of antisemitism”
“I expect the state authorities to use their full weight to prevent such antisemitic acts in the future”

“Unfortunately, it is impossible to separate this reprehensible act from the extreme anti-Israeli position of the Labor government in Australia, including the scandalous decision to support the UN resolution calling on Israel “to bring an end to its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as rapidly as possible” and preventing a former Israeli minister from entering the country”

Minority have no respect no regard for our law enforcement, our values, our way of life -- play the race card and everyone keels over

06 December 2024
Fire bombed -- Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne, Australia, targeted in an arson attack with people inside

• Please! Stand by Israel our ally

The burning of any place of worship is abhorrent More so, a synagogue in the current volatile situation

Australia defends stance on Israel following criticism from Netanyahu
The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald by Paul Sakkal 07 December 2024

Extracts:
Australia’s envoy against antisemitism Jillian Segal said, in an interview:Whose fault is that?

Jews feeling unsafe, living in fear, want
1. law and order
2. safeguard people and property
3. Action! not cold comfort

Extracts:

Trump leads the way on Israel but Australia fails to take the cue
The Australian 05 December 2024

• Trump leads the way on Israel but Australian Prime Minister Albanese fails to take the cue

It is amazing that no one other than president-elect Donald Trump has forcefully demanded the return of the Israeli hostages
Israel’s so-called allies have mostly avoided the subject

Australia warned over Israel ‘sell out’
The Australian 05 December 2024

• Australian government warned over Israel ‘sell out’

The incoming Trump administration may look “unfavourably” on Australia’s move against Israel at a major UN vote, the Albanese government has been warned

Australian Government kicks Israel to the kerb to save its political skin
The Australian 07 December 2024

• Australian government kicks Israel to the kerb to save its political skin

Australian Labor government’s shift towards hostility to Israel in the wake of the Hamas and Hezbollah assaults can be interpreted only as a reward for such aggression It is a morally bankrupt position

Trump fires a warning shot, Australia plunges the knife into Israel
The Australian 07 December 2024

• Trump fires a warning shot, Australian government plunges the knife into Israel

Imagine if the world had held the line against those who want to obliterate the state of Israel

Australian government walking in step with the wicked
The Australian 04 October 2024

• To the political left, some kids matter more than others

In my life, I never imagined a situation where the government of a free, functioning democracy such as Australia would be unable to tell right from wrong. Would be so comfortable walking in step with the wicked, unable to take a stand against evil

Extracts:

Australia no longer an Israeli ‘key ally’
The Daily Telegraph 07 December 2024

• Australian government no longer an Israeli ‘key ally’

No longer a ‘key ally’: Why Israel’s comments on Australia matter
Benjamin Netanyahu once proclaimed Israel and Australia were “extraordinary friends” – until now

Australia ‘could feel pressure from Trump to back Israel’
Financial Review by Andrew Tillett 08 November 2024

• Australia ‘could feel pressure from Trump to back Israel’

Incoming US president Donald Trump’s administration could push Australia to be more supportive of Israel, adding a new source of pressure on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as he tries to avoid alienating Muslim supporters / voters

The two most immediate foreign policy crises Trump inherits are,
1. Russia’s war on Ukraine
2. Middle East conflict where Israeli troops are in Gaza and Lebanon, fighting pro-Iranian terror groups - Day 428

Stand by Israel
Israel's so-called allies 'flip-flop' UN voting

No doubt always automatic majority at the UN for anything against Israel, by all the nations hostile to Israel ever since it was created decades ago if Israel can't count on its so-called allies at their time of dire need...

The issue -- now is not the time because it rewards terrorism. Prize for October 7

From: Responsible Statecraft December 5, 2024

Winners: Turkey and Israel are reaping rewards from the chaos in Syria
Losers: The resistance axis: Assad, Tehran and Hezbollah.

The surprise offensive by Syrian rebels led by a radical Islamist group HTS with roots in Al Qaeda dramatizes the enormous regional repercussions set off by Israel’s war against Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

Badly battered by Israel’s air strikes and ground campaign in southern Lebanon, Hezbollah’s inability, at least for now, to be a prominent player in defense of the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is a real game-changer, as evidenced by the ease and speed with which the insurgents advanced on the ground after launching their campaign on November 27

HTS is identified as a Salafi-Jihadist group and was formerly known as the Al Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front and is designated by the U.S. and other countries as a terrorist group.

From: The Times of Israel December 8, 2024

Syria’s rebel forces continued their lightning advance through the country over the weekend, saying Saturday that they had seized the regions of Quneitra and Daraa near the border with Israel

The Israel Defense Forces vowed a strong response in the event that they “turn in our direction.”

1. Syria rebels take areas near Israel border;
2. IDF warns them not to ‘turn in our direction’
3. IDF helps UN forces repel attack by gunmen in Syrian Golan,
4. IDF holds drill simulating rapid deployment,
5. and sends more troops to its side of Golan;
6. Netanyahu convenes security cabinet
7. CNN says Assad nowhere to be seen in capital, may have fled
8. West thinks Assad regime may fall in days

Foreign Minister Sa'ar: Israel concerned, but not intervening in conflict

It is alleged HTS is supported by Ukraine among others, this way they can hurt Russia Assad's biggest supporter they do the same in Africa.

War monitor says Assad has fled Syria after rebels enter capital

https://apnews.com/article/syria-assad-sweida-daraa-homs-hts-qatar-7f65823bbf0a7bd331109e8dff419430

That! is “the word on the street” If true, may be bad news for Israel though

Assad has fled Syria after rebels enter capital
Associated Press by Bassem Mroue and Zeina Karam 08 December 2024

Extracts:

• War monitor says Assad has fled Syria after rebels enter capital

The government denied rumors that Assad had fled the country

The head of a Syrian opposition war monitor said early Sunday,
Rami Abdurrahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told The Associated Press,

• The insurgents’ march

Abdurrahman’s comments came shortly after Syrian insurgents said they had entered Damascus, capping a stunning advance across the country as residents of the capital reported sounds of gunfire and explosions

The fall of Damascus would leave government forces in control of only two of 14 provincial capitals: Latakia and Tartus

• Assad’s status

The rapid rebel gains, coupled with the lack of support from Assad’s erstwhile allies, posed the most serious threat to his rule since the start of the war

• Diplomacy in Doha

The foreign ministers of Iran, Russia and Turkey, meeting in Qatar, called for an end to the hostilities
Turkey is a main backer of the rebels

*Karam reported from London. Associated Press writers Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria; Abby Sewell in Beirut; Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad; Josef Federman and Victoria Eastwood in Doha, Qatar; and Ellen Knickmeyer in Washington contributed to this report

The toppling of Assad's regime in Syria may be bad news for Israel
The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon 06 December 2024

Extracts:

• The toppling of Assad's regime in Syria may be bad news for Israel

A weakened Syrian regime under Assad therefore is in Israel’s interest
But here’s the rub: Israel would like to see Assad weakened but not overmuch and not toppled

The sudden rekindling of the Syrian civil war has many Israelis looking to the northeast and asking the following question:
Or in other words, who would Israel least like to see parked on its border with Syria:
1. Iranian-backed Shia jihadist extremists?
2. or Turkish-backed Sunni jihadists?

Since the answer is neither Israel’s approach to the developments in Syria will be to stay out of the melee as long as its security interests are not directly or immediately threatened

As Yitzhak Shamir was once quoted as having said during the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s when two of the Jewish state’s fiercest enemies were weakening each other,
And this sequence of events led to the decision by the Syrian rebels to try to retake Aleppo and reignite the civil war at a time when three of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s biggest allies are severely weakened or preoccupied:
1. Moscow tied up in Ukraine
2. Hezbollah at their weakest point in years due to the Israeli onslaught
3. Iran all but lost its "Axis of Resistance" “ring of fire” proxies willing to do, its bidding

With Assad’s three allies far from what they once were, the rebels saw an opportunity – one that they had clearly been planning for – and pounced. Not coincidentally, the rebels struck on November 27 – the same day the Hezbollah-Israeli ceasefire was announced

This likely would not have happened were it not for October 7, 2023

The toppling of Assad's regime in Syria may be bad news for Israel
The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon 06 December 2024

Extracts:

• Israel wants Assad weakened not toppled - That’s the paradox

Israel is an actor in this drama in that its actions in Lebanon and Syria significantly weakened two of Assad’s primary backers – Hezbollah and Iran – prompting the rebels to strike

But Israel is only an indirect actor not actively involved in the fighting taking place in the north of Syria

Nevertheless Israel has definite interests in Syria, primarily to weaken the Iranian-Syrian-Hezbollah axis and prevent Iran from using Syria as it has in the past, to rearm and build up Hezbollah

• A weakened Syrian regime under Assad therefore is in Israel’s interest

But here’s the rub: Israel would like to see Assad weakened but not overmuch and not toppled

Why weakened?
1. So that Syria will be unable for generations to pose a credible threat to Israel
2. The long-running civil war has taken Syria out of the circle of countries that can pose a conventional threat

The toppling of Assad's regime in Syria may be bad news for Israel
The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon 06 December 2024

Extracts:

• Hamas' vicious attack on Israel

Hamas’s attack is already reshaping the Mideast well beyond the borders of Gaza in ways few anticipated

It was clear after October 7, 2023 there would be strong aftershocks that would be widely felt Just how strong and how widely felt is quickly becoming apparent

• Syrian civil war

The Syrian civil war which began in 2011 pitted a hard-to-keep-straight jumble of different actors with a myriad of different ideological interests one against the other The renewed fighting is no different

• four key players

Here’s a look at the prime interests of four key players in that drama:
1. Israel
2. Turkey
3. Iran
4. Russia

The toppling of Assad's regime in Syria may be bad news for Israel
The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon 06 December 2024

Extracts:

• Israel

Notice that in the current war, Assad has not opened up an additional front against the Jewish state not wanting to give it any pretext to blast away at the Syrian army

The IDF has struck some 70 targets in Syria over the year but those have primarily been Iranian and Hezbollah assets not assets belonging to the Syrian army

And why does Israel not want to see Assad overly weakened?
Because Israel would like to see Damascus move away from Iran and toward the moderate Sunni countries like the United Arab Emirates

In recent months there has been positive movement in that direction, movement that will likely now come to a halt as Assad will need more – not less – help from Iran

If in the past, the bargain offered to Assad was economic aid from the Gulf countries in exchange for moving out of Iran’s circle of influence, now Syria is in desperate need of boots on the ground – which only Iran or its proxies, can provide

• A new ruler in Damascus of the Sunni jihadist variety would be unpredictable

As to why Israel would not like to see Assad toppled, this is because that may lead to chaos, something rarely good for Israel

Jerusalem, in general, likes predictability – and Assad in Syria provides that

While Assad is no friend, Israel at least knows what to expect from him,
1. what he can and cannot do
2. what he will and will not do

If under the guise of the reignited civil war, Israel sees Iran trying to transfer weapons to Hezbollah, it can be expected to act
But, short of that, it can be expected to let its enemies just slog it out – all the while repeating the mantra:

The toppling of Assad's regime in Syria may be bad news for Israel
The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon 06 December 2024

Extracts:

• Turkey

For the rebels to launch the type of offensive that they did, they needed the go-ahead from Turkey which Erdogan gave -
even though Erdogan's backing of the rebels puts him at odds with Iran, Russia and – inasmuch as one of his interests is to squash the Kurds – also the US -- Why risk this?

• Syrian refugee crisis in Turkey

Because Erdogan is keen on resettling in northern Syria the estimated 3.5 million Syrian refugees who poured into Turkey since the start of the civil war and because Erdogan wants to further undermine Kurdish efforts in the region

Regarding resettlement of the refugees, Turkey and Syria have been in reconciliation talks for months
(Erdogan quickly backed the rebels when the civil war began)

But these talks have gone nowhere, with Assad demanding that Turkey remove its troops from a security zone that Turkey, together with the SNA, have carved out in northern Syria

The Syrian refugee crisis has increasingly become a domestic issue in Turkey, where – amid an economic crisis – there has been a backlash against the refugees, something that hurt Erdogan’s party in local and parliamentary elections

• buffer zone

Erdogan wants them to return precisely to the buffer zone in the north

• Kurdish threat

In addition, Erdogan is hoping that the fighting will help contain and potentially remove the threat he perceives from the Kurdish groups in northeastern Syria which – at least until President-elect Donald Trump comes into power on January 20, 2025 – have US support

• Rebels' success

1. This rebel offensive now gives Erdogan added leverage against Assad to reach an agreement regarding the Syrian refugees
2. The success of the rebels gives Erdogan increased leverage and strengthens his position in shaping Syria’s future

The toppling of Assad's regime in Syria may be bad news for Israel
The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon 06 December 2024

Extracts:

• Iran

Along with Assad, Iran is the biggest loser as the rebels gain ground

Tehran has invested billions in Syria since the beginning of the civil war there, seeing the country as central to its efforts to encircle Israel with a “ring of fire” of proxies willing to do its bidding

Iran’s interest is clear: to preserve Syria as a conduit of arms to Hezbollah and as a platform from which it can produce arms for the Lebanese terrorist group and rebuild its prime proxy

If Assad falls, that conduit is lost

• Like Hezbollah, Iran’s resources are not limitless and – because of the drubbing Hezbollah took in Lebanon – the resources Iran can now allocate to save Assad are not the same as they were in the past
• Iran has militias comprised of Iraqis, Pakistanis and Afghanis, it may deploy but these militias do not match Hezbollah in their battle readiness and training
• Hezbollah, decimated by Israel, is in no position to send forces now, to prop up Assad

Syria is key to Iran’s regional influence and if Assad falls, it loses that asset

The toppling of Assad's regime in Syria may be bad news for Israel
The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon 06 December 2024

Extracts:

• Russia

Russia intervened actively in 2015 in the Syrian civil war and by so doing tipped the scales in Assad’s favor

Moscow’s intervention stemmed from several interests that are as important for the Kremlin today as they were then

The first is that through Syria, Russia is able to project power throughout the Middle East and combat US influence in the region

Assad gave Russia,
1. a much-coveted warmwater port on the Mediterranean in Tartus
2. and an air base near Latakia

Agreements with Assad will allow Russia to operate the port and air base for the next half century if not longer

• strategic significance

This has strategic significance for Moscow which explains why, in the midst of its war with Ukraine, over the last week it has undertaken bombing runs against the rebels in northern Syria, trying to halt their advance

• Syria's poor showing and rapid defeat

In addition, Moscow has an interest in showing other allies that it will come to their aid and keep them from obliteration – one reason the rapid defeat last week of Assad forces around Aleppo was such an embarrassment for the Kremlin

Assad’s poor showing undermines Russia’s position in the region and trashes the perception Russia wants to project that – unlike the US – it is a superpower on which its allies can rely to ensure they do not fall

Syria has FALLEN. ????????

Mossad and its traitorous puppets in the U.S. government have overthrown the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

We’re watching the Greater Israel Project play out right in front of our eyes.

https://x.com/realstewpeters/status/1865609631411671273

https://t.me/beholdisraelchannel/45946

The Washington Post December 8, 2024
The shocking speed of Syria’s rebel advance against Assad:

The lightning offensive, led by the armed Islamist faction Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, ended a four-year stalemate between Assad and HTS factions based in Idlib province.

Syrian fighters mounted a stunning offensive against the Assad regime, gaining control of the major cities of Aleppo, Hama, Homs and Damascus, in just eight days.

Don't harm Israel -- if not for them 1. Hezbollah at their weakest point in years due to the Israeli onslaught
2. Iran all but lost its "Axis of Resistance" “ring of fire” proxies willing to do, its bidding

Assad fall likely would not have happened were it not for Iran backed Hamas October 7

Oh, no! another border enemy Hostile NATO member Turkey backed HTS

Al Jazeera December 8, 2024
Israeli minister urges new line of defence in occupied Golan Heights

Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli says the opposition advances in Syria “are far from a cause for celebration” for his country

“Most of Syria is now under the control of affiliate organisations of” al-Qaeda and ISIL (ISIS) he was quoted as saying by the Israel Hayom newspaper, apparently referring to the fighters led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham armed group that recently entered Damascus.

Meanwhile, he said the strengthening of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the expansion of their control in the northeast of the country was a positive development.

“Israel must operationally renew its control at Mount Hermon [in the occupied Golan Heights] and establish a new line of defence based on the ceasefire line of 1974 [with Syria]” the minister added.

The SDF is backed by the US and its allies.

The majority of Syria’s Golan Heights region was occupied by Israel in 1967 and annexed by it in 1981

Israeli tanks cross Syria border fence for first time in 50 years: Oh, no! another front

Shortly after Israel said it would bolster its military presence on Syrian soil in reaction to the rebel offensive, Israeli tanks have reportedly crossed the border fence with Syria for the first time since 1974

The move is purportedly aimed at preventing Syrian armed forces or civilians, regardless of their allegiance, from coming close to the Israeli positions, according to the Maariv newspaper.

Syria faced with opportunity to build a country for all: SDF commander

Mazloum Abdi, the General Commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) says Syria is witnessing a “historic moment” and the fall of an authoritarian regime.

“This change is an opportunity to build a new Syria based on democracy and justice that guarantees the rights of all Syrians,” the commander of the Kurdish-led and US-backed force wrote in a post on X

Just a week ago, the regime still maintained control over significant portions of the country. So how did it all unravel so quickly?

On November 27, a coalition of opposition fighters launched a major offensive against pro-government forces.

The first attack came at the front line between opposition-held Idlib and the neighbouring governorate of Aleppo.

Three days later, the opposition fighters took Syria’s second-largest city, Aleppo.

Named Operation Deterrence of Aggression, this offensive was fought by several armed Syrian opposition groups led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and supported by allied Turkish-backed factions.

HTS – led by Abu Mohammed al-Julani – is the largest and most organised, having ruled the governorate of Idlib for years before this offensive.

Other groups that took part in the operation were the National Front for Liberation, Ahrar al-Sham, Jaish al-Izza and the Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement, as well as Turkish-backed factions that fall under the umbrella of the Syrian National Army.

Militarily as well, the al-Assad regime has been weak for years, relying on Russian and Iranian military support to prop it up.

But, analysts say, Russia is bogged down in its invasion of Ukraine and Iran and their Lebanese ally Hezbollah have been damaged by Israeli attacks – they could not come to the rescue of the faltering Syrian army.

Nobody knows where al-Assad is yet.

He and his Defence Minister Ali Abbas are both in unknown locations, according to Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali, who told Al Arabiya news website that they had lost communication on Saturday night.

According to SOHR head Rami Abdel Rahman, al-Assad left Syria via Damascus international airport while it was secured by the army. Soldiers abandoned it shortly after and opposition fighters took control of it.

Has the whole government fled?
No, Prime Minister al-Jalali has stayed, speaking to the press early on Sunday to say he had remained to make sure things kept running.

Erdogan tried to work it out with Assad but the latter wouldn't agree, without Turkey this coup wouldn't be possible.

Assad and his family are in Moscow, where they get asylum on humanitarian grounds.

What’s Next for Syria After the Collapse of Assad’s Government?
Predicting Syria’s future is challenging, as the government’s sudden demise took many people who have watched the region for years by surprise.

By Matthew Mpoke Bigg
Dec. 8, 2024
Updated 3:29 p.m. ET

The collapse of the government of President Bashar al-Assad has sparked jubilation inside Syria and beyond, but it has also plunged the country into deep uncertainty.

Fundamental questions about the nation’s government, security and economy remain to be answered. Some analysts say that predicting what comes next is made more challenging because the government’s sudden demise took many people who have watched the region for years by surprise.

“It is hard to bring process and a smooth transition to a fast-moving situation,” said Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House, a research institute in London. “The speed and uncertainty poses many risks for what comes next pertaining to accountability and good governance to protect the interests of the Syrian people.”

Mr. al-Assad ruled Syria for nearly a quarter of a century, presiding over the suppression of an uprising by civilians and a rebellion that began in 2011. In the ensuing war, more than half a million Syrians died, including 200,000 civilians, according to human rights groups. Millions of people fled the country.

“This is a moment to celebrate and, looking at the joy of Syrians today, that is understandable,” said Lahib Higel, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group research institute. “But there is also the worry about what is going to happen tomorrow.”

Perhaps the most immediate question is how quickly the rebel groups are able to secure the capital and prevent a chaotic power vacuum and what their plans are now that they have met their goal of deposing Mr. al-Assad, analysts said. It was also unclear how far and how fast the rebel coalition could extend its control over the whole country, a factor critical to regaining stability, or whether they would even remain united after ousting the Syrian leader.

It’s also not clear how a new government would balance the competing interests of other forces that hold territory in Syria and whether it could manage a transition process — or even whether it could succeed in paying for civil services, a basic but necessary task for any functioning state.

Ms. Higel said the situation in Syria could be compared to Iraq in 2003 after U.S. forces ended the long rule of the dictator Saddam Hussein. Initial optimism about the prospects of a peaceful democratic transition quickly soured, not least because looting swept the capital, Baghdad, and growing instability and violence eventually led to a brutal sectarian civil war.

However, the Islamist rebels ousted Mr. al-Assad from inside the country, which could bolster their popular legitimacy, she said.

Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the rebel group once linked to Al Qaeda that has controlled most of Idlib Province in northwestern Syria, has run a government guided by a conservative and at times hard-line Sunni Islamist ideology. But, Ms. Higel noted that he showed tolerance of the country’s religious and ethnic minorities in areas where his group gained control.

“All of these indications are positive, but will they hold?” she said. She noted that Syria today is much more impoverished than Iraq in 2003 and so societal and economic pressures are even greater.

In order to grasp potential next steps for Syria, it is crucial to consider Iran’s longstanding support of the Assad regime and how its role has evolved, said Lina Khatib, an associate fellow at Chatham House.

Mr. al-Assad has been a close Iranian ally, but the government in Tehran in recent days abandoned him and gave up Syria, its main foothold in the Arab world. Iran has been weakened after a year of conflict, including via the Iran-backed militia, Hezbollah, in Lebanon, that began with the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas, its proxy force in Gaza.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/08/world/middleeast/syria-assad-rebels-what-next.html

Wilders visits Israel and occupied West Bank despite criticism
By our news editors
Dec 8, 2024 at 10:35 pm
Update: 39 min ago
\
Geert Wilders is visiting Israel for a day and a half. The PVV leader announced this on X . On Monday, he will speak to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog, among others. He will also visit the occupied West Bank.
On Sunday, Wilders met with Minister Gila Gamliel of Innovation, Science and Technology in Tel Aviv. According to him, there are also talks with the ministers of Defense, Foreign Affairs and Energy on the agenda. He will also visit the chairman of the Knesset, the parliament.

The visit is accepted by the cabinet, but causes irritation. Minister Caspar Veldkamp (Foreign Affairs) said on Thursday that visiting settlements on the West Bank is "certainly not in line with the government program". The critical Veldkamp also said that he wanted to discuss Wilders' trip in the cabinet. But at the same time, according to Veldkamp, ??the cabinet cannot dictate to the members of parliament what they are allowed to do.

Later, Veldkamp said that it is "up to Mr Wilders himself to visit Netanyahu". "I am responsible for cabinet policy and as a cabinet we set out a policy line based on the government programme."

Prime Minister Dick Schoof saw "no reason" to discuss Wilders' planned trip during the cabinet meeting. "Members of Parliament are all responsible for their own words, their own agenda and travel schedule and their own tweets," he said a few weeks ago.

Biden: Fall of Assad Regime 'Direct Result of Israeli Blows' Against Iran, Hezbollah

with Syrian Army "little or no will to fight"!

From: Al Jazeera December 8, 2024
What we’ve seen over the past 10 days is that the Syrian Army has crumbled in the face of the opposition’s advance.
There’s been little or no will to fight.

We have to remember that these men are conscripts. They were forced to join the army.
“People were forced into the military and often not paid properly and not compensated properly.

So the fact that they would ultimately jump ship or not put their lives on the line for a regime that wasn’t catering to their needs is not really a surprise,”

From: Haaretz December 9, 2024
IDF strikes Syrian air defense systems, missile storage facilities:

The Israeli army struck dozens of targets in Syria in recent hours, including air defense systems, missile storage facilities, weapons systems, fighter jets and intelligence collection equipment.

1. SYRIA: Rebel coalition says will complete transfer of power to a transitional governing body with full executive powers
2. Post-Assad Syria is in danger of being run by out-of-control militias
3. Israeli leaders are watching events across the border in Syria with a mix of trepidation and glee
4. IDF intercepts missile from Yemen; -- Houthis, you are next!
5. IDF seizes Golan buffer zone after Syrian troops abandon positions
6. IDF "to ensure that no hostile force embeds itself right next to the border"
7. LEBANON: Israeli strikes on southern Lebanese villages kill six, health ministry says
8. IDF said it had destroyed Hezbollah weapon depots in southern Lebanon
9. GAZA: Mother of Gaza hostage says Israel 'going for a partial deal' that'll 'sentence to death' hostages left behind
10. IDF completed an operation to destroy tunnels in northern Gaza
11. CENTCOM carried out dozens of airstrikes on Islamic State targets in central Syria
12. CENTCOM strikes aimed to ensure IS does not take advantage of the current situation in Syria