Israel is battling 3 enemies: Is larger conflict in West Asia on horizon?

The conflict between Israel and Palestine only seems to be widening. On Tuesday, Israeli forces responded to shells from Syria by firing back its own mortar shells and artillery. This after the Iran-backed Hezbollah launched strikes on Israel ‘in solidarity’ with the Palestinian people. But what happened exactly? Is a larger conflict in West Asia on the horizon? Let’s take a closer look: What happened? As per The Times of Israel, Syria on Tuesday fired mortar shells at the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Many of the projectiles landed in open areas in Israel and caused no damage. The IDF, meanwhile, responded by conducting artillery strikes in Syria. The military said its soldiers had fired “toward the origin of the launching in Syria”.  It did not provide details.

A source in southern Syria said a Palestinian faction had fired three rockets toward Israel.

The Britain-based Opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported that a Palestinian faction conducted the rocket attack from Syrian territory. The Syrian government did not comment. This, as Lebanon also launched missiles towards northern Israel on Tuesday, as per the newspaper. A Lebanese security official said six rockets were fired from southern Lebanon into northern Israel Tuesday evening. The officials said it was not immediately clear who fired the rockets from the area of the Lebanese southern village of Qlaileh. He spoke on condition of anonymity. Officials from the Hezbollah militant group did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Spokespeople with Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad said they had no information on the rockets. The firing of the rockets from southern Lebanon came a day after three Hezbollah fighters were killed along the border and an Israeli army officer as well. [caption id=“attachment_13234222” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Israeli tanks are positioned near Israel’s border with Lebanon, in northern Israel, October 10, 2023. REUTERS[/caption] A UN peacekeeping force deployed along Lebanon’s southern border called for “everyone to exercise restraint” and make use of the force’s “liaison and coordination mechanisms to de-escalate” and prevent a fast deterioration of the security situation. It said it had detected several rockets fired from southeast Lebanon toward “Israeli-occupied territory,” followed by artillery fire from Israel toward Lebanon. The statement came shortly after Hezbollah said it fired at Israeli positions in the disputed Chebaa Farms along the border with Syria’s Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the Six-Day War of 1967. It later annexed the territory in a move not recognised by the United Nations. Lebanon claims the territory as its own. Chebaa Farms was captured by Israel from Syria during the 1967 Mideast war, but Lebanon considers it and the nearby Kfar Chouba hills as Lebanese territories. In 1974, a United Nations force was dispatched to a buffer zone on the Golan Heights and tasked with monitoring a ceasefire. At least 25,000 Israeli settlers live in the territory, joining at least 23,000 Druze who remained on the land after Israel captured it. The majority of the Golan’s Druze – followers of an offshoot of Shiite Islam – still consider themselves Syrian. Most do not hold Israeli citizenship. The force known as UNIFIL said it is in contact with authorities on both sides of the border at all levels “to contain the situation and avoid a more serious escalation.” Is a West Asia conflict looming? Concerns have already raised concerns that Israel might have to fight a multi-front war – resulting in  the conflict drawing other players in. Now, with Israel engaged in a fierce battle with Hamas militants in Gaza while exchanging salvoes with Lebanon and Syria, those fears might be realised. A piece in The New York Times noted that people on both sides are already expressing worry about whether this situation will be a redux of 2006 – when Israel and Hezbollah fought to a bloody draw after a month-long battle. “Although paling in comparison to the fighting that has taken place around Gaza, in the country’s southwest, the continued clashes on Israel’s northern border have deepened unease over the possibility that the conflict — already the broadest invasion in 50 years — could spread to multiple fronts,” the piece stated.

Experts say the conflict widening to encompass West Asia cannot be ruled out.

Particularly if Iran’s suspected role in helping Hamas is confirmed. As a piece in The Quint noted, “The tensions may escalate rapidly, as Iran is the biggest regional threat to Israel in West Asia. Qatar, Kuwait, Syria, and Lebanon’s Hezbollah have all supported and praised the Hamas attack and blamed Israel for the current situation.” The piece said every country in West Asia has its own geopolitical motives – and that the attack might result in an adverse effect on the region. “The possibilities of further escalation and multi-front war are highly anticipated, which may bring International players to the court,” the piece concluded. On Monday,  Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Israel’s response to the unprecedented multi-pronged attack by Palestinian gunmen from the Gaza Strip will “change the Middle East.” Netanyahu was speaking to mayors of southern border towns hit by the surprise assault that began on Saturday, a statement from his office said. It did not elaborate on his prediction. Only time will tell if Netanyahu’s prediction will come true. With inputs from agencies