Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned last week that Israel is facing a new era with an escalated security situation.

“It’s the end of the era of limited conflicts,” Gallant said at a press briefing on Thursday. “We are facing a new security era in which we may face real threats to all fronts at the same time. We operated for years under the assumption of facing only limited confrontations but that has changed. There’s a growing phenomenon today of a consolidation of arenas.”

“Iran is the driving force in the convergence of arenas – transferring resources, ideology, knowledge and training…Iran feels increasing self-confidence – in its view, the West is deterred and lacks effective tools against it. While Israel is busy dealing with Iran’s proxies, it (Iran) is getting stronger economically and militarily, allowing it room for action. This is something that should keep the whole world and Israel up at night.”

Regarding Israel’s northern border, Gallant said. “We are systematically damaging Iranian assets and capabilities in the region. We will not allow Iran to establish an Iranian army in Syria, we will not allow the Golan Heights to become Lebanon, and we will not allow Syria to serve as a springboard for the transfer of advanced weapons into Lebanon. We are working on all this on a large scale. Since I took office at the beginning of the year, we have doubled the rate of attacks in Syria. We are systematically harming intelligence and military capabilities.”

Gallant also addressed the Palestinian arena: “The weakening of the Palestinian Authority is compelling us to make significant security decisions. We are forced to carry out more intense operations in areas where the PA doesn’t operate.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)