Izenkot: "We killed and killed hundreds of ISIS operatives on a very large scale."
In the second part of the interview with him, the former chief of staff reveals new details about the Iranian threat, the nuclear deal, the attacks in Syria, the Hezbollah tunnels and also: how we almost eliminated Qassem Suleimani and the IDF's unknown war against ISIS
Ben Mercury
27/01/2022
Thursday, 27 January 2022, 08:43 Updated: 09:21
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"Only Yossi Cohen, Ron Drummer and Benjamin Netanyahu dealt with this issue of withdrawing from the nuclear agreement. No one spoke to the defense establishment," says former chief of staff Gadi Izenkot in the second and final part of the talks with him, which will be published on Friday in the Maariv Weekend supplement. It was thunder on a clear day. In my opinion, this was also a strategic mistake. "
In an extensive interview to be published tomorrow, Izenkot talks about the Iranian threat, the nuclear deal, the attacks in Syria, the Hezbollah tunnels and also about how we almost eliminated Qassem Suleimani and the IDF's unknown war against ISIS:" We killed They have hundreds of activists and we have harmed them on a very large scale.
"Izenkot added in an interview:" When Netanyahu enters the prime minister's office and Gabi Ashkenazi shows him what has been done about the Iranian issue, according to the descriptions, I understand that his jaw is falling. Bibi got into it very seriously. Olmert has already been allocated significant budgets,Netanyahu continues to devote dedicated money to the issue. "Bibi's arrival accelerates the process of building power."
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"We killed hundreds of ISIS operatives and hit them on a very large scale." Izenkot (Photo: Reuven Castro)
"Both Barak and Netanyahu have set three principles for using force against Iran: that there will be capability, that there will be necessity, that is, 'the knife to the neck', and that there will be international legitimacy. You can not do it just like that, alone, without prior notice. "With very deep meanings. The discourse that surrounds it is not serious enough."
On the Americans' withdrawal from the agreement, the former chief of staff says, "This is a strategic mistake in light of the fact that it freed the Iranians from certain shackles.
When they started violating the agreement, they had legitimacy for these violations, because of the American exit.
"Then the sanctions are partial, there is no supervision, the Chinese and the Russians do not cooperate with the Americans."
"To get a bomb is not enough fissile material. And there is another element, it is called America. Today's United States is a different United States than in 2015. How much the Iranians count the Americans is a very relevant element, and unfortunately at the moment they do not count them and do not consider an attack. "American. They are taking advantage of the situation, and that's a problem."
Can Israel launch such an attack alone?
"It's complicated. Let's take the United States. When you pick up the F35, they do not need you to update them, they know it, everything is connected to their systems. "International, the day after. All of these things need to be worked on. By the way, on the one hand you act after the wall guard as if you were after the Yom Kippur War, on the other hand when an envoy of the American president, Rob Mali, comes here, you announce that you will not meet him."
Israel almost eliminated him about a year and a half before the Americans. Suleiman (Photo: Reuters)
You mean, like, Prime Minister Bennett?
"Yes. It's a problem, it's very strange. It's hard for me to understand why a statement should be made before the presidential envoy arrives that the prime minister will not meet him. There is some arrogance here. I understand the great concern from Bibi, something like this".
Qassem Suleimani, who was the commander of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, was assassinated by the Americans in January 2020. Izenkot reveals in an interview how Israel almost eliminated him about a year and a half earlier, after launching Iranian rockets at the Golan Heights. "In Operation House of Cards, Suleimani survived death," Izenkot said. "There was a decision, which received approvals, to harm the same event in everyone who works against us, whatever his rank. We decided that if he was in some HFK or Knesset or something in the area, we would remove him from the decision that everyone who works against us is dead." "But we could not close a circle on him."
How was the Bambam, the battle between the wars, born?
"The first activity began in the days of Gabi Ashkenazi, in my opinion around 2008 or 2009, I was the commander of the Northern Command and I asked the chief of staff to come and introduce him to the idea.
He came to command and saw an orderly presentation.
We called it a 'combined campaign'.
I said to him: Sir, you keep saying that an army can be in one of two situations: either in war or in preparation for war.
So I have a third situation for you, a situation that is not a total war but also not a preparation, but a combined campaign of consecutive actions against the opponent.
It was agreed that I would manage it from the command.
"Tal Russo will lead the special operations of the General Staff. This is how it worked between 2008 and 2010. Later, in the days of Bnei Gantz, it became established and escalated. For me, it became a whole campaign."
As part of the Bambam, Izenkot says that the IDF participated in the war against ISIS: "We decide to participate in the war against ISIS, and Israel is waging war throughout the Middle East. We are cooperating with many armies, in countless special operations, and harming ISIS Very extensive.
I can estimate that hundreds of ISIS operatives were killed in our operation and more than a thousand wounded, facilities and infrastructure were destroyed.
"
They strive, in their own words, "to inflict on Israel a blow like no other has ever known."
The image they use is like Salah a-Din beating the Crusaders.
They come up with the idea of conquering the Galilee and digging tunnels.
"These are not Hamas tunnels, but something huge, road-wide, with ten lanes."
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