Operation Roaring Lion, named after the military campaign jointly launched on February 28 by Israel and the United States against the Islamic Republic of Iran, “a échoué†. Worse, while its objective was to weaken, or even overthrow, the Iranian regime, the operation had the opposite effect: “Iran emerges strengthened from this latest escalation on the economic, diplomatic and security levels.â€
This is the scathing observation made by Dani Citrinowicz, researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), considered one of the best specialists on Iran in Israel, in the conservative daily Israel Hayom.
Furthermore, the war highlighted the “profond fossé†between the United States and Israel, more particularly between the American president, Donald Trump, and the Israeli Prime Minister, which forces the Jewish state to rethink its strategy vis-à-vis Tehran.
Israel caught in the “trap†of Iran and Hezbollah
For Nadav Eyal, daily editorialist Yediot Aharonot, Israel fell into the “trapped trap†by Tehran with the firing, on Sunday, by Lebanese Hezbollah, of explosive drones on Israeli territory while the agreement between the United States was about to be finalized.
“If Israel did not react, a new strategic equation would emerge: Hezbollah could attack Israel while benefiting from Iranian protection. But if Israel struck Beirut, it would immediately be accused of compromising the agreement reached between Washington and Tehran… he writes.
From this point of view, Israel now finds itself confronted with an unprecedented equation, while Iran seeks to take advantage of the differences between Israel and its Western allies, and to obtain the release of its assets by the Gulf countries.
Despite this new context, Israel intends to preserve its freedom of action in Lebanon, notes the site Times of Israel, citing the words of Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, who said Monday that the Israeli army would maintain its presence in the south of the country.
Netanyahu, main loser
For Amos Harel, daily military analyst Ha’Aretz, hostile to Benyamin Netanyahu, the American-Iranian agreement eludes all the stated objectives of the war – fall of the regime, dismantling of its nuclear program, cessation of its ballistic program and support for its regional allies.
“Netanyahu no longer has much room for maneuver†, he writes, noting that the Israeli Prime Minister emerges weakened from this sequence which he hoped would be happier in view of the next legislative elections.
But the announcement of the agreement caused an outcry within the entire Israeli political class, reports Times of Israel. The Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, a far-right figure, affirmed that the agreement “does not commit Israel†and that Israel should not withdraw “of no territory conquered by the army†in Lebanon.
In opposition, former general Gadi Eisenkot accused Benjamin Netanyahu of refusing to answer Israeli questions “with honesty and truthâ€. The leader of the Democrats, Yair Golan, for his part, denounced an agreement concluded “au-dessus de la tête d’Israël†, believing that it erases the military gains obtained in recent months.
