The Nagel Committee, commissioned by Netanyahu government to assess military preparedness in face of looming threats, warns that Israel could face direct confrontation with Turkey and must prepare for a possible war.
By World Israel News Staff
Israel could face a confrontation with Turkey, a state committee warned Monday, adding that a proxy conflict between the two could potentially escalate into a direct war.
On Monday, the Nagel Committee submitted its findings to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz,and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
Meeting with the ministers at the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem, the committee, headed by Prof. Jacob Nagel, discussed their report on Israel’s military readiness and potential threats to state security and the implications of both for the defense budget.
The committee was commissioned by Netanyahu in August to independently assess the needs of the IDF to confront new threats that Israel is likely to face over the next decade.
Among the potential threats identified by the committee are Turkey and its proxies, chief among them Islamist rebel forces in Syria who have seized control over Damascus and are now working to establish a new government.
Warning of the possible dangers of an “extremist Syrian force that also refuses to accept Israel’s very existence,” the report noted in addition that the new Syrian leadership could bring Israel into a confrontation with the rebels’ patron state, Turkey.
“The problem would escalate if the Syrian force practically became a ‘Turkish’ proxy, as part of Turkey’s aspirations to restore the Ottoman legacy,” according to the report.
The positioning of Turkish forces within Syria, where Israel’s military has operated regularly for over a decade – both to target pro-Iranian forces and to remove potential terrorist threats – could lead to the outbreak of a war between Israel and Turkey, the report hinted.
“The presence of Turkish proxies or forces in Syria could increase the risk of a direct Turkish-Israeli confrontation,” it said.
Turkey could also indirectly threaten Israel by aiding the new Syrian leadership in rebuilding the country’s shattered military, the report continued.
“Establishing strong ties with Turkey would shorten the process of the emergence of a new Syrian-Turkish threat.
“In this context, it must be taken into account that the entry of the Turkish military into Syria could lead to the arming of Syria at a relatively rapid pace.”
More broadly, the committee warned of possible “drastic changes” in Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, and the Palestinian Authority that could lead to increased strategic threats to Israel.