Israel Confirms Airstrike Against Syria
But the strike, which one official said targeted a shipment of advanced surface-to-surface missiles, also raised new concerns that the region's most powerful military could be dragged into Syria's civil war and spark a wider conflagration.
Fighting has repeatedly spilled across Syria's borders into Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan and the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights during more than two years of conflict, while more than 1 million Syrians have sought refuge in neighboring countries.
The airstrike, which was carried out early Friday and was confirmed by U.S. officials, comes as Washington considers how to respond to indications that the Syrian regime may have used chemical weapons in its civil war. President Barack Obama has described the use of such weapons as a "red line," and the administration is weighing its options – including possible military action.
Israel has said it wants to stay out of the brutal Syria war, but could inadvertently be drawn in as it tries to bolster its deterrence and prevent sophisticated weapons from flowing from Syria to Hezbollah or other extremist groups.
Israel and Hezbollah fought a monthlong war in mid-2006 that ended in a stalemate.
Israel believes Hezbollah has restocked its arsenal with tens of thousands of rockets and missiles, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly stated the Jewish state would be prepared to take military action to prevent the Islamic militant group from obtaining new weapons that could upset the balance of power.
It is especially concerned that Hezbollah will take advantage of the chaos in neighboring Syria and try to smuggle advanced weapons into Lebanon. These include anti-aircraft missiles, which could hamper Israel's ability to operate in Lebanese skies, and advanced Yakhont missiles that are used to attack naval ships from the coast.
While Israeli officials on Saturday portrayed the latest airstrike as the continuation of Israel's deterrence policy, more Israeli attacks could quickly lead to an escalation, leaving open the possibility of retaliation by Hezbollah or even the Assad regime and Syria ally Iran.
In January, Israeli aircraft struck a shipment of what was believed to be Russian-made SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles bound for Hezbollah, according to U.S. officials. Israeli officials have strongly hinted they carried out the airstrike, though there hasn't been formal confirmation.
Neither Hezbollah nor Syria responded to that strike.
In a warning to Israel earlier this week, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said his militia "is ready and has its hand on the trigger" in the event of an Israeli attack on any targets in Lebanon.
Details about Friday's strike remained sketchy.
The U.S. officials said the airstrike apparently hit a warehouse, but gave no other details.
Israeli officials did not say where in Syria the Israeli aircraft struck or whether they fired from Lebanese, Syrian or Israeli airspace.
Israel possesses bombs that can travel a long distance before striking their target. The use of such weapons could allow Israel to carry out the attack without entering Syrian skies, which would risk coming under fire from the regime's advanced, Russian-made anti-aircraft defenses.
The Israeli and U.S. officials spoke anonymously because they had not been given permission to speak publicly about the matter.
Obama said Saturday it was up to Israel to confirm or deny any strikes, but that the U.S. coordinates very closely with Israel.
"The Israelis, justifiably, have to guard against the transfer of advanced weaponry to terrorist organizations like Hezbollah," Obama told the Spanish-language TV station Telemundo.
The Syrian government said it had no information on an Israeli attack, while Hezbollah and the Israeli military spokesman's office declined comment.
Amos Gilad, an Israeli defense official, would not confirm or deny the airstrike, but played down cross-border tensions.
Hezbollah has not obtained any of Syria's large chemical weapons arsenal and is not interested in such weapons, Gilad said. Instead, the militia is "enthusiastic about other weapons systems and rockets that reach here (Israel)," he said Saturday in a speech in southern Israel.
Assad "is not provoking Israel and the incidents along the border (between Syria and the Israeli-controlled Golan) are coincidental," Gilad said.
After Hezbollah's military infrastructure was badly hit during the 2006 war, the group was rearmed by Iran and Syria – with Tehran sending the weapons and Damascus providing the overland supply route to Lebanon.
"This is a very sophisticated network of Iranian arms, Syrian collection, storage, distribution and transportation to Hezbollah," said Salman Shaikh, director of The Brookings Doha Center and in 2007 involved in U.N. weapons monitoring in Lebanon.
Shaikh said Israel had detailed knowledge of weapons shipments to Hezbollah at the time and most likely has good intelligence now. "The Israelis are watching like hawks to see what happens to these weapons," he said.
With Israel apparently enforcing its red lines, much now depends on the response from Hezbollah and Syria, analysts said.
Israeli officials have long feared that Assad may try to draw Israel into the civil war in hopes of diverting attention and perhaps rallying Arab support behind him.
But retaliation for Israeli airstrikes would come at a high price, said Moshe Maoz, an Israeli expert on Syria.
"Bashar has his own problems and he knows that conflict with Israel would cause the collapse of his regime," Maoz said. "He could have done that long ago, but he knows he will fall if Israel gets involved."
Hezbollah, which is fighting alongside Assad's troops, appears to have linked its fate to the survival of the Syrian regime. Nasrallah, the Hezbollah chief, said this week that Syria's allies "will not allow Syria to fall into the hands of America or Israel."
On the other hand, Hezbollah could endanger its position as Lebanon's main political and military force if it confronts Israel, and it's not clear if the militia is willing to take that risk.
Hezbollah isn't Israel's only concern. Israeli officials believe it is only a matter of time before Assad's government collapse, and they fear that some of the Islamic extremist groups battling him will turn their attention toward Israel once Assad is gone.
Reflecting Israel's anxiety, the Israeli military called up several thousand reservists earlier this week for what it called a "surprise" military exercise on its border with Lebanon.
Obama has said the use of chemical weapons would have "enormous consequences," but has also said he needs more definitive proof before making a decision about how to respond.
Obama said Friday that he didn't foresee a scenario in which the U.S. would send troops to Syria. Instead, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has said Washington is reviewing its opposition to arming the opposition.
The U.S. so far has balked at sending weapons to the rebels, fearing the arms could end up in the hands of al-Qaida-linked groups or other extremists in the opposition ranks.
Secretary of State John Kerry, meanwhile, is heading to Moscow next week to try to persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to support, or at least not veto, a fresh effort to impose U.N. penalties on Syria if Assad doesn't begin political transition talks with the opposition.
Russia, alongside China, has blocked U.S.-led efforts three times at the United Nations to pressure Assad into stepping down.
In Syria, about 4,000 Sunni Muslims fled the coastal town of Banias on Saturday, a day after reports circulated that dozens of people, including children, had been killed by pro-government gunmen in the area, activists said.
Also Saturday, Assad made his second public appearance in a week in the capital Damascus. Syrian state TV said Assad, who rarely appears in public, visited a Damascus campus, and footage showed him being thronged by a large crowd. The report said Assad inaugurated a statue dedicated to "martyrs" from Syrian universities who died in the country's uprising and civil war.
NRA official: Our freedom is under attack
President Barack Obama and national media are demonising law-abiding gun owners in the wake of recent violent acts, National Rifle Association leaders and political allies said on Friday at its first convention since the Connecticut school massacre.
"Our freedom is under attack like never before," Chris Cox, executive director of the NRA Institute for Legislative Action, said during a leadership forum.
"When a deranged criminal murders innocent children, they blame us."
The NRA is the nation's leading advocate for gun ownership. It works assiduously to defend the Second Amendment to the US Constitution setting out the right to bear arms.
Organisers expect about 70 000 attendees at the 142nd NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits in Houston, which began on Friday and continues through Sunday.
Since last year's meeting, a national debate about gun laws sprang up after the December shooting at Newtown, Connecticut's Sandy Hook Elementary School, where 20 children and six adults were killed.
Major victory
The NRA scored a major victory in Congress last month when it beat back a proposal supported by Obama to expand background checks for gun buyers.
At the leadership forum, US Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, thanked those who fought against the background checks proposal and other efforts to tighten gun control.
"That's your victory," Cruz said. "It's the victory of the American people."
But Cruz cautioned that the fight is not over. Supporters of the proposal, which is a key part of Obama's gun-control effort sparked by the Newtown shooting, have vowed to revive it.
Texas Governor Rick Perry, who burst onto stage after a video showing him shooting a gun, described what he sees as a pattern: When a hate-filled person commits a horrific act, people who hate guns and hate gun owners call for more gun laws, he said. Creating more laws that criminals will ignore is not the solution, said Perry, a Republican.
"They do nothing but make it harder for law-abiding Americans to own guns," Perry said.
No one likes gun violence - especially NRA members, said the governor, who has been working to convince gun manufacturers in states considering tighter gun control to move to Texas.
NRA members are working to make people safer by proposing solutions such as enforcing existing laws, fixing the mental health system and protecting schools, said NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre.
They are teachers, firefighters, volunteers, moms and taxpayers, he said.
"The media and political elites can lie about us and demonise us all they want, but that won't stop us," LaPierre said.
"We are Americans, we are proud of it and we are going to defend our freedom."
In the exhibit hall, more than 550 vendors showed off everything from rifles and targets to offers of hunting safaris.
Seminars offered on Friday included a personal safety workshop called "Refuse to be a Victim" and a chef-taught class on cooking wild game.
Italian minister moved after slur
A junior member of Italy's new grand coalition
government was given a new portfolio on Saturday, just two days after her
appointment, after gay rights associations criticised statements she had made
as homophobic.
In a statement, Prime Minister Enrico Letta said Michela Biancofiore would no longer serve as undersecretary for Equal Opportunities, Sport and Youth Policies, but would be given the Public Administration and Simplification portfolios.
Biancofiore, a member of Silvio Berlusconi's conservative People of Freedom party, had told a web interviewer in January: "There are not just heterosexuals, but also different sexualities, which today, unfortunately, are very common."
Franco Grillini, head of gay rights group Gaynet, complained that Biancofiore was "known for her statements against the rights of homosexual couples," and questioned the "logic" of asking her to "work for civil rights, including those of homosexuals".
Paola Concia, an openly gay former parliamentarian from the centre-left Democratic Party, quipped that putting Biancofiore in charge of Equal Opportunities was akin to "placing Cruella de Vil as the guardian of a Dalmatian puppy mill".
Biancofiore responded to her critics in several newspaper interviews published on Saturday. "I am not a homophobe. As a true liberal, I hate all kinds of discrimination," she told La Repubblica.
Speaking to Corriere della Sera, she insisted that using the word "unfortunately" to describe homosexuality was just "a turn of phrase".
She accused gay rights groups of being prejudiced against her, and urged them to look at wider societal problems. "They just defend their own partisan interests," Biancofiore said.
In a statement, Prime Minister Enrico Letta said Michela Biancofiore would no longer serve as undersecretary for Equal Opportunities, Sport and Youth Policies, but would be given the Public Administration and Simplification portfolios.
Biancofiore, a member of Silvio Berlusconi's conservative People of Freedom party, had told a web interviewer in January: "There are not just heterosexuals, but also different sexualities, which today, unfortunately, are very common."
Franco Grillini, head of gay rights group Gaynet, complained that Biancofiore was "known for her statements against the rights of homosexual couples," and questioned the "logic" of asking her to "work for civil rights, including those of homosexuals".
Paola Concia, an openly gay former parliamentarian from the centre-left Democratic Party, quipped that putting Biancofiore in charge of Equal Opportunities was akin to "placing Cruella de Vil as the guardian of a Dalmatian puppy mill".
Biancofiore responded to her critics in several newspaper interviews published on Saturday. "I am not a homophobe. As a true liberal, I hate all kinds of discrimination," she told La Repubblica.
Speaking to Corriere della Sera, she insisted that using the word "unfortunately" to describe homosexuality was just "a turn of phrase".
She accused gay rights groups of being prejudiced against her, and urged them to look at wider societal problems. "They just defend their own partisan interests," Biancofiore said.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's Successor As President Of Iran Could Be Less Hostile Toward U.S.
Now, a race is beginning to choose his successor and it looks like an anti-Ahmadinejad referendum is shaping up. Candidate registration starts Tuesday for the June 14 vote.
Leading candidates assert that they will be responsible stewards, unlike the firebrand Ahmadinejad, who cannot run again because he is limited to two terms. One criticized Ahmadinejad for "controversial but useless" statements. Others even say the country should have a less hostile relationship with the United States.
Comments from the presumed front-runners lean toward less bombast and more diplomacy. They are apparently backed by a leadership that wants to rehabilitate Iran's renegade image and possibly stabilize relations with the West.
The result however may be more a new tone rather than sweeping policy change. Under Iran's theocratic system, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei wields supreme power, making final decisions on nuclear and military questions. However, the president acts as the public face of the country, traveling the world. A new president might embark on an international image makeover and open the door to less antagonistic relations with Iran's Arab neighbors and the West.
The vote comes at a critical time in Iran, a regional powerhouse with about 75 million people and some of the largest oil reserves in the world. Nuclear talks between Iran and world powers are at an impasse while the Islamic Republic barrels ahead with a uranium enrichment program that many are convinced is intended for atomic weapons. Iran also serves as the key ally of Syria's President Bashar Assad, a mainstay so far helping keep him in power as rebels fight to oust him.
It is also in the middle of an apparent shadow war with Israel. Tehran has blamed Israel for deadly attacks on its nuclear scientists. Israel in turn has alleged Iranian attack plots on its diplomats or citizens around the world, including one where two Iranians were convicted of planning to attack Israeli, American and other targets in Kenya on Thursday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned repeatedly that Iran must be stopped from acquiring nuclear weapons, through use of force if need be.
While polls in Iran are unreliable, the tenor of the candidates' speeches reflects a sense among the public that Ahmadinejad's belligerent stance toward the rest of the world has not helped.
"Ahmadinejad has followed a policy of confrontation. He made a lot of enemies for Iran. What were the results?" asked Tehran taxi driver Namdar Rezaei, 40. "The next government should pursue a policy of easing tensions with the outside world."
All the main candidates – including a top adviser and a former nuclear negotiator – are closely linked to the ruling clerics, since opposition groups have mostly been crushed. They reflect the mood of Khamenei, himself a former president, who wants nothing more than to end the internal political rifts opened by Ahmadinejad.
On Wednesday, Khamenei told prominent clerics to avoid "divisive" comments during the election. It is the clerics who will select a small group of hopefuls, probably no more than six, for the ballot.
The ultimate goal is to find ways to ease painful Western sanctions that have evicted Iran from international banking networks, brought public complaints over rising prices and cut vital oil exports by more than half. But what still stands in the way is a complicated dance: Maintaining uranium enrichment while addressing Western fears that Iran could move toward atomic weapons – a charge it denies.
For more than two years, Ahmadinejad has openly defied Khamenei in an attempt to expand the authorities of the presidency. The disputes reached a meltdown point in late 2011, when Khamenei's loyalists mounted an impeachment campaign. Khamenei stepped in to call it off, but warned that Iran could one day eliminate the presidency for a system where the parliament picks a prime minister instead.
"This is a chance for Iran to bring a new tone after eight years of Ahmadinejad," said Ehsan Ahrari, a Virginia-based strategic affairs analyst. "There seems to be a real interest in the ruling system to quiet things down."
Of course, Ahmadinejad is not likely sit on the sidelines after he leaves office. He still carries significant populist support across Iran, particularly in rural areas that benefited from aid from his government. Whichever candidate he backs could get an Election Day bump.
He is now trying to push his top adviser and in-law, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, onto the ballot, but will likely be rejected by the Guardian Council, the group that vets all candidates. Ahmadinejad has been traveling around Iran for weeks, sometimes along with Mashaei.
After the internal political upheavals he triggered, the clerics are expected to stick with safe and loyal candidates, and the candidates know it and are playing to that dynamic.
Tehran's mayor, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, chided Ahmadinejad for "controversial but useless" statements that undermined Iran's international standing.
"Where did the case of the Holocaust take us? We were never against Judaism. It's a religion. ... No one could accuse us of being anti-Semitic," he told Iran's Tasnim news agency last month. "But suddenly, without consideration for the results and implications, the issue of the Holocaust was raised. How did this benefit Iran or the Palestinians?"
Another prominent candidate, Ali Akbar Velayati, took a clear shot at Ahmadinejad by saying Iran needs a "principlist" as the next president – meaning a conservative who will not question the authority of Khamenei or the ruling clerics.
Velayati, a senior adviser to Khamenei, has joined in an unusual three-way alliance with Qalibaf and parliament member Gholam Ali Haddad Adel. Each has promised to give key posts to the two others should he win the presidency.
"If we do not succeed, we have to try for another eight years in order to take back the country's management," Velayati said in a February speech in the seminary city of Qom.
Velayati has deferred to Khamenei on any possible overtures to the U.S. But Qalibaf and others suggest they would urge the leadership to remain open for direct talks.
"Confrontation with the U.S. is not a value by itself," Qalibaf said. "At the same time, an alliance with or bowing to the U.S. won't meet our interests, too. These are two extremist views. We should follow a realistic approach. Dialogue (with the U.S.) is not a taboo."
Mohsen Rezaei, a former chief of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard chief who is seeking another chance at the presidency after losing four years ago, says only that he favors a "win-win dialogue."
"That means we won't lose and they (West) won't think Iran is a threat to the world," he said.
And candidate Hasan Rowhani, Iran's former nuclear negotiator and Khamenei's top national security representative, also disparaged Ahmadinejad's grandstanding style, saying Iran needs a "government of prudence."
Another candidate, former Interior Minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi, said even restoring diplomatic ties with Washington is not out of the question as long as Iranian "interests are ensured."
"I believe there is no need for Iran to be at war with the U.S. forever," he said. "Iran has the capacity to protect and ensure its national interests while having ties with the U.S."
Ahmadinejad foe Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a former president, appears unlikely to make one last presidential run, despite speculation to the contrary. The official IRNA news agency quoted Rowhani on Wednesday saying the 78-year-old Rafsanjani "will definitely not" be a candidate.
However, Rafsanjani still wields considerable clout, and his endorsement will carry weight. Earlier this week, Rafsanjani urged his nation to lower tensions with Iran's archenemy Israel, which is considering military action over Tehran's nuclear program.
"We are not at war with Israel," Rafsanjani was quoted as saying by several Iranian newspapers, including the pro-reform Shargh daily. He said Iran would not initiate war against Israel, but "if Arab nations wage a war, then we would help."
Ahmadindejad's role in this election stands in sharp contrast to the last, where he was front and center and backed by the clerics. Accusations that his re-election was clumsily rigged by a clerical establishment panicked by the possibility of reformers coming to power led to massive demonstrations and reprisals spanning weeks, the most serious unrest in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution itself.
The election was so contentious that the two main opposition leaders of 2009, Mir Hossein Mousavi and cleric Mahdi Karroubi, remain under house arrest. The remnants of the opposition appear increasingly unlikely to persuade their one major hope, former President Mohammad Khatami, not to seek a comeback run. That leaves them with the choice of boycotting the vote or picking from an establishment-friendly lineup.
While this election is unlikely to spark the same fireworks, a desire for change remains.
"Why shouldn't we be in good terms with the outside world? Why tensions at home and abroad?" asked 35-year-old real estate agent Shahram Rashidi in Tehran. "That's why we really need a totally different president this time."
