Amidror: US attack in Syria shows Iran that military option is indeed ‘on the table’

Amidror, a fellow at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, said that Iran bears responsible for Syrian President Bashar Assad's actions.

By HERB KEINON
People stand near near rubble of damaged buildings in the northern Aleppo countryside in Syria in December 2016 (photo credit: REUTERS)
People stand near near rubble of damaged buildings in the northern Aleppo countryside in Syria in December 2016
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Iran, more than any other country in the world, is carefully taking note of the US missile attack in Syria overnight, former National Security Council head Yaakov Amidror said Friday.
“More than any place in the world, the decision makers in Iran are learning the reaction of the Americans, taking into account that if they don't behave, the military option is on the table, unlike the previous administration,” Amidror said during a conference call organized by The Israel Project.
Amidror, a fellow at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, said that Iran bears responsible for Syrian President Bashar Assad's actions, since they and Hezbollah have given him unqualified support over the years regardless of his brutality. Amidror said that Iran supported Assad after his previous use of chemical weapons, and that there was no question that even if they did not have prior knowledge of the attack in Idlib, they are “morally responsible.”
Regarding whether Israel itself will take military action in Syria, as former head of military intelligence Amos Yadlin suggested earlier this week, Amidror said that Israel would remain “on the sidelines” but provide both humanitarian aid to the Syrians, and intelligence assistance to its allies acting inside Syria.
“We will stay on the sidelines, because our strategic decision was not to take part in this war,” he said. “If there is something specific that we can do militarily or from an intelligence point of view, I'm sure Israel will be willing to contribute to such efforts,” adding that “I'm sure we are active in helping our allies with intelligence.”
Amidror said that the two red lines that Israel set out remain: that Jerusalem will act in the future, as it has in the base, against the transfer of advanced weaponry to Hezbollah, and to keep Hezbollah from using Syria as a launching pad for attacks against Israel.