Israel & Iran: Just One Little Question to Danny Ayalon

Israel & Iran: Lebanon Searches the “Hezbollah Arms” Ship

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On Friday, Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon told Sky News that Israel was "not bluffing in its threats to to attack Iran:

The one who's bluffing is Iran, which is trying to play with cards they don't have. All the bravado that we see and the testing and the very dangerous and harsh rhetoric is hiding a lot of weaknesses.

If Iranian behavior and conduct continues as they have exhibited so far, it is obvious that their intentions are only to buy time and procrastinate.

Just one question: if Teheran is bluffing over its nuclear programme, then what exactly is Tel Aviv attacking?

Comments

[Norman]

The question is not if Teheran is bluffing about its nuclear program "technically" but "politically".
Perhaps the mullahs hope that an Israeli intervention will push the people to be tightened around his leaders. It would be a Machiavellian and risky bet.

[Paleene]

I guess one should rather let them assume Iran's bluffing and therefore not bombing it instead of jumping on AN's threats and fulfilling the mullah's intentions (see post above).

[Dave]

"The one who’s bluffing is Iran, which is trying to play with cards they don’t have. All the bravado that we see and the testing and the very dangerous and harsh rhetoric is hiding a lot of weaknesses."
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The Iranians have the cards. Things have been relatively quiet on the Gaza and Lebanon fronts; probably because Iran is saving those proxy forces so they can be used against Israel in the event of a strike on Tehran. That would explain the weapons-carrying vessel and the test-firing of the new Iranian designed 60 kilometer rocket. An attack on Tehran would provoke a multi-pronged attack on Israel.

[Barry Ward]

"An attack on Tehran would provoke a multi-pronged attack on Israel."

And undoubtedly a multi - pronged response from Israel. Hamas and Hezbollah would be then on the receiving end of something particularly nasty. Something that they have not experienced before.

It has seemed to me that many of the "actions" and so - called "wars" that Israel has been involved in over the past 20 or so years, have been just a little half-hearted on their part. The times when Israel has REALLY believed that their existence was threatened was the 6 Day war in 1967 and the Yom Kippur war in 1973. THEN, there was nothing holding them back - and their enemies received a very big surprise.

In Africa, they say NEVER get between a Hippopotumus and its young! Another one elsewhere is -- NEVER do anything to make Israel believe that their very existence is really threatened. The very foundation of their State's creation after WW2 was based on the idea they will NEVER again allow anybody to attempt their annihilation . Anybody who does not fully understand this underlying passion of theirs - will live to regret it, but not for long!

Barry