Israeli analyst confirms link between Israel, “moderate” Syrian rebels

In the wake of several reports and articles uncovering alleged cooperation between “moderate” Syrian rebels and Israel, a new exposé by Israeli political commentator Ehud Yaari confirms an existing relationship between the two sides.

The Washington Institute for Near East Policy fellow published an article in Business Insider looking for ways to solve Israel’s “southern puzzle” – in reference to Israel’s bid to secure its border with southern Syria from Islamist militants.

According to Yaari, the ideal way for Israel to solve the issue is to upgrade communication and cooperation with “moderate, local, non-Islamic” groups. This includes expanding the “modest” arms supply already provided by Israel to these groups.

The report focuses on the military strategic importance of southern Syria to Israel. Since the “region offers training grounds, a significant number of non-Islamist fighters, and armed tribal groups in the Leja area,” Yaari talks about the necessity of Israel joining forces with the United States and Jordan to transform the area into a “territorial base” to train the so-called “moderate” rebels.

Yaari’s proposal comes after earlier reports confirming that some rebel groups maintain frequent contact with the Israeli military forces “including frequent secret meetings reportedly held in Tiberias” in northern Occupied Palestine.

The Israeli writer also spoke about an “undeclared truce” between Israel and Al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria, the al-Nusra front. So far, the Islamist militants have not engaged in any clashes with the Israeli army.

“(Al-Nusra’s) cadres prefer loose, ad hoc cooperation with other rebel factions, including those with ties to Israel,” he elaborates. Consequently, Yaari affirms that Israel will not attempt to “disrupt military strength” of Al-Qaeda affiliates for now.

However, Israel has launched airstrikes against Syrian government positions on numerous occasions during the ongoing Syrian civil war.

On September 23, Israeli forces shot down a Syrian government fighter plane which mistakenly crossed in the occupied Golan Heights airspace.

In January 2013, Israel openly and directly intervened in the Syrian crisis for the first time when it bombed a convoy in Syria, which allegedly contained weapons destined for Hezbollah, the Lebanese resistance group which fights alongside Syrian government forces.

On the same day, an Israeli air raid targeted a military research facility in Jamraya, northeast of Damascus under the cover of night.

In May 2013, Israel carried out an airstrike into Syria, supposedly targeting a shipment of missiles bound for Hezbollah in neighboring Lebanon.

Commentators have questioned why al-Nusra front or Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) have not targeted Israel in their attacks.

ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who leads the militant group’s self-proclaimed caliphate in parts of Iraq and Syria, spoke in July about the terror inflicted on Palestine, but he did so only in passing, in the wider context of the terror Muslims face around the world.

In June, ISIS responded to questions about why it wasn’t fighting Israel instead of killing people in Iraq and Syria.

“We haven’t given orders to kill the Israelis and the Jews,” the organization said on Twitter. “The war against the nearer enemy, those who rebel against the faith, is more important. Allah commands us in the Qur’an to fight the hypocrites, because they are much more dangerous than those who are fundamentally heretics.”