ANALYSIS / Rocket fire on North is realization of Iranian threat

[Adsos Letter]

Source: Haaretz

By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent

Several days before Israel launched Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki called several of his European counterparts and warned that Israel would face additional fronts if it attacked.

The rocket fire on Thursday morning from Lebanon into northern Israel can be seen as the realization of the Iranian threat.

It is safe to assume that Palestinian operatives, working in coordination with Hezbollah and sponsored by Iran, are responsible for the rocket attacks in Nahariya and elsewhere in the north.

The rocket fire also places Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah among the list of top Arab militant leaders. He doesn't just talk, he acts.

For now, Hezbollah is too sophisticated to claim responsibility for Thursday's rocket fire. Elections in Lebanon are scheduled to take place in about six months, and Hezbollah does not want to be perceived as the party that once again disrupted the relative calm the country has experienced. The group does not want to risk its standing at the polls.

However, Nasrallah's rhetoric from recent days says it all: "We are prepared for all Israeli aggression," he said. In other words, Hezbollah won't take responsibility for the rockets into Israel, but will claim credit for standing up against any Israeli retaliatory attacks, should there be any.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1053821.html