While foreign media reports flurried on the alleged Israeli attack on a Syrian convoy of advanced weapons making its way from Syria to Lebanon, officials in Jerusalem decided to remain silent. The Syrians were actually the ones who confirmed that there was, indeed, an attack; but as per usual, they claimed that the site attacked was a science research laboratory in Damascus that has nothing to do with advanced weapons on their way to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Six years ago, the Syrians acted the same way following an attack on their nuclear reactor in the northern part of the country. They also reported an Israeli attack back then, but also, of course, claimed that Israel attacked an abandoned building, and not an atomic reactor. But despite the messages from Damascus, it does not appear that either side has any interest in escalating the already tense situation in the north or in opening a new front. After all, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah are up to their necks on another more important front in this conflict: the internal front in Syria, in which Assad is managing, with Nasrallah's help, to battle for his life against his enemies. The Israeli operation, according to foreign sources, was carried out against shipments of advanced weapons making their way from Syria to Hezbollah never mind exactly where the transfer would take place in Damascus or near the Syria-Lebanon border. The attack was too little too late. After the Second Lebanon War in 2006, tens of thousands of advanced rockets were moved from Syria to Lebanon right under the watchful eyes of Israel, bolstering Hezbollah's capabilities significantly. Occasionally, Israeli officials have threatened that Israel would act to prevent the movement of advanced weapons from Syria to Hezbollah. In actuality, Israel refrained from any action at the time, and actually eroded to dust its deterrence on this issue. But this time, Israel's red lines have been crossed. First, these are advanced weapons, or "equilibrium changers," as some foreign sources have referred to them. Second, it is clear that the next step for the Syrians and Hezbollah would be a transfer of chemical weapons from Damascus to Beirut. Therefore, it is important to highlight that this is already approaching the daunting red line that must not be crossed. If this is the situation, the actions attributed to Israel were correct; even if you jump to action late, better late than never. Jerusalem took advantage of Assad's weakness and the fact that the latter is currently embroiled in a war to the death inside Syria, so Israel is the last thing on his mind. Such a specific Israeli attack, if it actually occurred, does not really matter. The obvious move for Assad now is to ignore the media reports about an Israeli attack and to continue in his real war against the insurgents he has been battling for almost two years. For Hezbollah, the story is more complex. The organization has been involved in a "secret war" with Israel for many years. In this framework, the organization does not have to take public responsibility for terrorist attacks against Israeli targets around the world, just as Israel has never taken responsibility for the assassination of Imad Fayez Mughniyah, Hezbollah's military commander, in Damascus a few years ago. The main issue for both sides was to maintain quiet on the Israel-Lebanon border. Accepting Israel's edict that Jerusalem will not accept the transfer of advanced weapons from Syria to Lebanon is problematic for Hezbollah. Either way, the story of the Israeli operation, if there really was one, against Syria and Hezbollah is not yet over.
