NobleSavage
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I'm guessing a shit storm. Does Israel have that capacity (not counting nukes)?
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What would happen if Israel decided to take out ISIS?
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braces_for_impact
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NobleSavage
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The US is just bombing them now, couldn't Israel do that? I know Israel and Syria don't get along, but isn't the Syrian government fighting ISIS? Considering ISIS is in Syria I'd go that route. Keep in mind I don't know much about military strategy in this area. Which is why I posed the question.
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That's kinda what I though.
Sure, but that wouldn't 'take them out' any more that the US doing it would. And Israel aren't as popular in the Middle East as the US (!) and have fewer places to land their planes.
They wouldn't lose, sure, but they don't have the infrastructure to attack as far away as Northern Iraq. They'd do what they do in Gaza or Lebanon, invade, make a lot of noise, kill lots of people including disputed numbers of actual soldiers, and then go home. Israel certainly doesn't need to fear attack from ISIS, but then that's true of several countries in the region. I don't think ISIS needs to worry about Israel either, unless they plan to try and occupy land near their border.
Israel have the most highly subsidised military in the world, receiving from the US roughly $1000 each year for each man woman and child in the country to spend on wartoys. They have their own respected arms industry, and what is probably the 3rd best tank in the world. It should surprise no one that they'd outgun an insurgency movement, however well motivated. But they don't have the power projection capabilities of the US, or even of a major European country. They're just not set up to operate far from home. They don't have the mobile HQs like the US, the local intelligence/propaganda capabilities of the UK, or anything like enough strategic transport.
They could certainly participate in someone else's effort though.
They would have an awfully hard time doing it that far from their borders.
Jayjay
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I think you might as well ask, what would happen if Israel decided to take out Japan.
Sure, Israel could probably damage ISIS somewhat, but why would they? ISIS isn't bothering Israel, and it doesn't have any land Israel wants.
Sure, Israel could probably damage ISIS somewhat, but why would they? ISIS isn't bothering Israel, and it doesn't have any land Israel wants.
ISIS seems a mixed blessing for Israel. It effectively deflates the threat to its northern border from Hezbollah and Syria. Return of the Golan Heights to Syria? Yeah, Assad has bigger problems. But the establishment of an Islamic Caliphate using western weapons? That could be trouble down the road.
NobleSavage
Veteran Member
Yeah, I know. I was looking to learn more about military strategy in the ME.
ISIS isn't bothering the US either (other than lopping off a few heads and making videos).
NobleSavage
Veteran Member
You think it would unite Sunni and Shia? There seems to be a lot of Muslims that don't like ISIS.
Arctish
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Every Israeli soldier sent to fight ISIS in Syria is one less soldier to patrol the West Bank and the fortifications around Gaza. Every reservist called up to active duty is one less citizen engaged in productive labor in the Israeli economy. Every IDF victory is one more rallying cry to defend the Islamic Caliphate from the Zionist threat.
Not worth it.
DBT
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It may just come down to who they happen to dislike the most, and/or what advantages there are to further their own interests...
dx713
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The Syrian government are not fighting ISIS, they're fighting their opposition, who they like to conflate with ISIS so they can cover their human rights abuses under the "fight against jihadists" umbrella.
At least, that was how it was before ISIS "officially" declared the Caliphate. The few journalists that were still undercover in the region noted how Assad's planes targeted much more often the "moderate" rebels who had booted the jihadists out of their towns than the jihadists compounds themselves.
I suppose that now, Assad might be resentful of the "official" grab of part of his land and would welcome some help to end it, but I'd still guess this is a secondary problem for him compared to the internal opposition.
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untermensche
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Israel has an incredibly powerful military, paid for by you and me.
But it can do less than the US military can do.
Israel got it's ass kicked the last time it occupied southern Lebanon.
If it attacked ISIS it could inflict casualties but it would suffer unacceptable casualties of it's own.
Israeli mothers will not send their sons and daughters to die in a fight against ISIS for very long.
But it can do less than the US military can do.
Israel got it's ass kicked the last time it occupied southern Lebanon.
If it attacked ISIS it could inflict casualties but it would suffer unacceptable casualties of it's own.
Israeli mothers will not send their sons and daughters to die in a fight against ISIS for very long.
It's impossible to defeat an enemy with a major outside base of support other than by annihilating the population. Thus it was impossible for Israel to win in Lebanon. They didn't even intend to--it was an occupation to keep down attacks, not conquest.
The Syrian government may not be fighting ISIS, but ISIS is surely fighting the Syrian government. The heads of Syrian solders on spikes in Raqqa attest to that.
fromderinside
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Non sequitur. Israel has already lost the war. Why? Any war with fundie sunnies would be a war against all sunnis. That has already happened and Israel carved out what it could by taking Golan , the West bank, and part of Sinai. It gave back the Sinai because it was impossible to defend that open place from attacks from Egypt. I sought truce with Syria in Golan as a security precaution against their strongest opponent and it is slowly trying to take the west bank through religious justifications over the past 40 years with a bunch rebellions over that time against them with some effect. They have given up Gaza as an indefensible patch. They have walled off the west bank to keep themselves from being suicided to death. hey won't attack Iran because they can't win that one.
Adding it all up Isreal hasn't the supply strength, the manpower, the military power, nor the will to take on ISIS as evidenced by failures in Lebanon, their near complete losses of weapons in the Sinai wars when it was only our ability to resupply them that kept them from ignominious defeats and recent polls about how they should proceed with Palestine.
Israel war with ISIL is a nice parlor game, but, when things are taken into account doing so would be the end of Israel. We wouldn't be able to save them without blowing up that part of the world.
War with ISIL would be a bit like Moses going to the mountain for help and the mountain fell on him.
Adding it all up Isreal hasn't the supply strength, the manpower, the military power, nor the will to take on ISIS as evidenced by failures in Lebanon, their near complete losses of weapons in the Sinai wars when it was only our ability to resupply them that kept them from ignominious defeats and recent polls about how they should proceed with Palestine.
Israel war with ISIL is a nice parlor game, but, when things are taken into account doing so would be the end of Israel. We wouldn't be able to save them without blowing up that part of the world.
War with ISIL would be a bit like Moses going to the mountain for help and the mountain fell on him.
Perception wise, on the street Israel is to the region what ISIS is to us . An oppressor. If the Israeli army moved into Lebanon, Syria, Iraq it would create a firestorm of opposition.
Netanyahu knows that. During the last presidential election he tried to pressure Obama into attacking Iran. He wants us to do it.
There is some movement. It has been reported the Arabs are considering some sort of reconciliation with Israel in the face of the chaos. That would be smart, Iran is the enemy of both Israel and the Arabs.
The Arab leadership controls the media. If they wanted to they could change the regional dialog on Israel. Without overt Ara support Israel would be committing suicide in any attack.
The Arabs were mostly silent during the last Gaza incursion, they see extremist Palestinians as a threat to their political order.