Syria and Israel communicating through aggressive smoke signals

TEHRAN,Nov.26(MNA)--The recent incident, in which unidentified gunmen from the Syrian side opened fire in the direction of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, and the subsequent retaliation by Zionist regime troops, should be regarded as part of the general crisis in Syria and should not be viewed as an isolated incident. Israel’s shelling of Syrian territories, allegedly in response to stray shells coming from Syria, could have two interpretations. First, the order to open fire might have come from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as a warning to the Israelis about the consequences of any potential interference in the Syrian crisis. This has been the case in Turkey, and Turkish officials have directly felt the repercussions of their intervention in Syria since they are now facing a new wave of violence in the country’s Kurdish regions. The second possibility is that Israel itself orchestrated the entire scenario in order to put more pressure on the Syrian government, which is struggling to resolve a crisis that has dragged on for 20 months. The recent developments in the Middle East could quickly become a contagion that spills over into other countries. The strength and scope of such a domino effect could be more serious in Syria in light of the country’s very sensitive geopolitical position and the pivotal role it has played in the regional resistance front. The United States and its allies are working to contain the popular movements in the region and to establish a new regional order, supervised and controlled by Israel. However, they are aware that military intervention in Syria could engulf the entire region in chaos. Thus, the tit-for-tat shelling between the two sides should not be viewed as a serious military confrontation, but rather as a communication of messages, with each side trying to influence the other. Israel is certainly aware that there will be serious consequences if it starts a war with Syria, even in the current situation, in which the Syrian military is busy with the internal crisis. In an interview with the Moscow-based TV network Russia Today, Assad cautioned that Israeli or NATO aggression against Syria would have irreversible repercussions. Thus, the exchange of shelling between the two sides is a kind of aggressive smoke signaling. Mohammad Ali Mohtadi is an established journalist and Middle East expert based in Tehran. (By Mohammad Ali Mohtadi )