— 🇸🇾/🇮🇱 SNA-affiliated Azaz News Network: 'There is no truth to the claims spread by 'anti-revolutionary media' that Israel has advanced in western Damascus countryside'

@Middle_East_Spectator

— 🇮🇱/🇸🇾/🇱🇧/🇱🇧 Regarding the Israeli Ground Maneuver in Western Syria:

If I were Hezbollah, I'd be looking at this maneuver very closely right now. If Hezbollah's leadership estimates that Israel will make an unexpected flanking maneuver to enter Lebanon through Syria, then it's best to take preemptive action and take the battle to Syria, or at least take precautionary measures and deploy some squads to the mountainous border area – and they might already be doing that as we speak.

That is, assuming Israel's goal for this maneuver in Syria actually is Lebanon. Because to be honest, I don't see any other reason for them to be pushing this much Northward along the Lebanese border area. Lebanon has to be their goal somehow.

If invading Lebanon is not their goal, then there are only two other scenarios I can think of that Israel might be aiming for. One is cutting the Damascus-Beirut highway near Yafour, which makes little sense considering that Israel has no reason to be worried about Hezbollah shipments from rebel-controlled Syria to Lebanon for now.

The other scenario, which would be a major 'WTF' moment, is that Israel will actually try to capture Damascus for whatever reason. I highly doubt they will, but if they simply wanted to create a Security Zone in Syria or even an independent Druze state, there would be no need to move this far up North, they could simply push for Daraa & Suwayda.

So, as I stated, it is far more likely that Netanyahu wants to continue the war against Hezbollah in Lebanon by flanking from the East (Syria), possibly advancing into the Beqaa or even Beirut. If this is indeed their goal, then they're planning for a very large war, which will likely draw in Iran directly.

In my opion, Israel favors its chances currently. Assad just fell, Trump is about to take office, and Iran under Pezeshkian is not as assertive as it was several months ago. There may never be a better 'opportunity' for Israel to go 'all-in' regarding Lebanon (& maybe even Iran) than now.

@Middle_East_Spectator

— 🇮🇱/🇸🇾/🇱🇧 So, basically 4 reasons that could explain this Israeli maneuver:

1. They want to flank Hezbollah and enter Lebanon from the East, which would mean the continuation of the war in Lebanon & a massive level of escalation not seen before.

2. They want to cut off 'Highway 1', the Damascus-Beirut Highway, in order to stop shipments of Iranian weapons to Hezbollah through Syria, which is unlikely considering that HTS / SNA will probably not allow these shipments regardless. But maybe Israel simply distrusts the rebels to that extent & want to make sure on their own.

3. They for some reason want to capture Damascus. At that point it would just be a plain 'landgrab' to expand Greater Israel, they have no legitimate reason to do this. Even the West would almost certainly condemn it.

4. They're just trolling everyone by advancing along the Lebanese border & near Damascus, and in reality they only care about establishing a security zone or a Druze state in the South of Syria in Daraa & Suwayda. (Or, in real terms, they want to be positioned near Lebanon 'JUST IN CASE' they need to carry out point 1. or 2.)

@Middle_East_Spectator

— 🇺🇸/🇬🇧/🇸🇾 NEW: The Washington Post reports that U.S. officials are considering removing Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) from the list of foreign terrorist organizations

The UK government is also open to the idea, but Prime Minister Keir Starmer states that a change in policy now is 'far too early.'

@Middle_East_Spectator

— 🇮🇱/🇸🇾/🇸🇾 Israeli troops inside Quneitra's government office, in front of a portrait of President Assad

@Middle_East_Spectator

— 🇸🇾/ 🇸🇾 BREAKING: Mass executions and cleansing of ethnic & religious minorities by HTS and SNA terrorist in Syria have started – we will share here some of the footage

@Middle_East_Spectator