Amid heightened tensions along the Israel-Gaza border Tuesday, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot outlined the threats facing Israel, the army's goals and the means at its disposal to confront its enemies on various fronts.
Overnight Monday, Israeli Air Force jets attacked a Hamas military installation in Gaza after another rocket was fired from the Strip into Israel. The projectile hit an unpopulated area in the Eshkol region Monday, causing no damage or injuries.
In a statement, the IDF reiterated its position that it holds the ruling Hamas organization responsible for any aggression coming out of Gaza, regardless of which group launched the rocket.
Addressing the situation on Israel's northern front, where it borders Lebanon and Syria, Eizenkot said, "Hezbollah has transitioned from defender of Lebanon to an organization that fights as an Iranian proxy in Syria, Iraq and Yemen, and has moved at least half its [fighting] force outside of Lebanon."
Speaking at an annual conference honoring late IDF chief Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, Eizenkot said that while Hezbollah "has gained substantial operational experience, it is paying a very heavy price for it, and this raises some serious questions about Lebanon."
"From our perspective, the simplest test is a test of capabilities. Today, when I look at the first ring of threats around Israel, the capability test suggests that the most significant threat is in the northern arena," he continued, referring to Lebanon.
"The second front, the Syrian front, has also undergone a very significant change," he continued. "Anyone who saw the maps of Islamic State's expansion can see substantial shrinkage. With that, in our generation, we will see the ISIS phenomenon continue. Although Islamic State was defeated, its ideology is still here."
Eizenkot added that the IDF is currently engaged in military and diplomatic efforts to prevent Iran from establishing a foothold in Syria.
"An Iranian foothold in Syria is bad for Israel, for Syria and for Europe. In Syria itself there are currently more than 2,000 Iranian advisers and experts, some 10,000 combatants from Shiite organizations, close to 8,000 Hezbollah fighters who are fighting alongside [Syrian President Bashar] Assad," Eizenkot said.
Turning his attention to recent developments with Hamas, Eizenkot said: "To keep Gaza quiet, Hamas is trying to incite terrorist attacks from Judea and Samaria. The situation in the Gaza Strip has been complex since Operation Protective Edge [in 2014]. On the one hand, not one Israeli has been scratched, not one IDF soldier has been lightly wounded and the communities surrounding Gaza are flourishing. On the other hand, some 60 rockets have been fired, around 20 in the past month. This is unacceptable to us.
"We are making multiple efforts, openly and secretly, to stop this," he said. "I don't recall one time the IDF attacked anything other than terrorist targets. [The targets] were either weapons manufacturing plants, command centers or its [military] capabilities.
"Renegade [terrorist] groups have an interest in disrupting the quiet and dragging us into a campaign in the Gaza Strip," Eizenkot continued. "We are on high alert. There's no need to rush into anything. If we have to, the IDF has the means to achieve its objectives. Deterrence isn't measured or tested by one day, nor by daily newspapers."
The chief of staff also discussed the threat posed by underground terror tunnels dug from Gaza into Israel.
"We have developed a method that detects the underground attack tunnels into Israel and we are taking overt and covert steps to counter them," he said. "In recent months, we have invested increasingly more in the Palestinian arena, with the intention of influencing it," he said.
The volatile nature of the security situation and reduced margins of error along Israel's borders, Eizenkot explained, could quickly lead to an immediate escalation of hostilities on any front. "This necessitates high defensive capabilities, a small and alert army, and a policy of measured use of force," he said.
Meanwhile, the Shin Bet security agency said Monday that a joint operation with the IDF and Israel Police led to the November arrest of a five-member terrorist cell in Judea and Samaria.
Members of the cell had planned terrorist attacks under instruction from a Hamas operative based in Gaza, the Shin Bet said after a court-issued gag order was lifted.
The Hamas operative was identified as Abdallah Arar. According to the Shin Bet, Arar was involved in the 2005 abduction and murder of IDF soldier Sasson Nuriel, was exiled to the Gaza Strip in 2011 within the framework of the Gilad Schalit prisoner exchange and has since returned to terrorist activity.
According to the allegations, Arar directed Ala Salim, a Judea and Samaria resident, to form a cell, purchase an M16 rifle and immediately carry out a terrorist attack. Arar transferred Salim the funds to purchase the weapon, the Shin Bet said in a statement.
