Can Israel, Hamas keep it calm after US killing of Soleimani?
For Israel, the return of deterrence is tainted with the possibility of a nightmare scenario.
With all eyes on Iraq, it would be a mistake to lose sight of the consequences of how the US killing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani on Jan. 3 is playing out in Israel and Gaza.
While Israeli leaders viewed the killing of Soleimani as necessary to enhance deterrence with Iran, the prospect of a US pullout from Iraq presents Jerusalem with a nightmare scenario, as would a collapse of precarious truce between Israel and Hamas — an unwelcome development for both parties.
For Israel, killing of Soleimani brings return of deterrence …
Graveyards are full, as the saying goes, of irreplaceable men and women. For Israel’s national security establishment, however, Soleimani was indeed indispensable to Iran’s regional agenda.
