Report: Israel, Saudia Arabia Prepare Secret Contingency Plan

Saudia Arabia has agreed to let Israel use its air space and provide support for an Israeli attack by cooperating in the use of drones, rescue helicopters and tanker planes, according to the British paper The Sunday Times.

“Once the Geneva agreement is signed, the military option will be back on the table. The Saudis are furious and are willing to give Israel all the help it needs,” the Times quoted a  source as saying.

However, in an analysis in Hamodia (Hebrew) on Sunday morning, senior correspondent A. Pe’er wrote that on the contrary, the closer the world powers and Iran get to signing a deal — which is almost certain to come in the next round — the less likely Israel will be to launch a military strike.

“The world powers believe that a deal will force Israel to back off from an independent military operation. They cannot entertain the possibility that all the world powers, led by the United States, will sign an agreement with Iran, and Israel will act on its own.”

Pe’er argues that even though Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s concerns are justified, he cannot afford to jeopardize the U.S.-Israel alliance.

He also suggests that Netanyahu should listen to the Americans, who are persuaded that the deal is a good one, even if not the best possible, and that Iran is looking for a way to climb down from its nuclear arms ambitions and needs time to do so.

This article appeared in print on page 6 of the November 18th, 2013 edition of Hamodia.