The war projected between Israel and the Iran-led bloc of Syria, Hizballah and Hamas is suddenly overshadowed by Turkish-Israeli hostilities over a deadly Israeli commando raid on an aid flotilla from Istanbul. Against the US president Barack Obama's bid to bridge the rift, Turkish generals are drawing up plans to break Israel's Gaza blockade and avenge 9 deaths, while Israel is bound by its war on terror to thwart them. DEBKA-Net-Weekly offers details of their preparations on the brink. To subscribe to DEBKA-Net-Weekly, click here

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To stop the flotilla crisis from spinning out of control, US president Barack Obama asked Israeli PM Binyamin Netanyahu to release all the remaining passengers without delay. His bid for Turkish restraint drew from PM Recep Erdogan the threat that if America did not punish Israel, Turkey would. Israel began evacuating diplomats' families from Turkey. Passengers said an al Qaeda-linked cell had imposed a quasi-military regimen aboard the Turkish Marmora.

In a rare public expression of concern, Meir Dagan, head of Israel's Mossad, warned Tuesday, June 1, that the progressive decline of American strength over the past decade and the perception of the Obama administration as "soft on military options for solving disputes" have cut deep into Israel's military and diplomatic maneuverability and made it fair game for its enemies. Barack Obama has not given up on an imposed peace solution - or radically amended his attitude toward Israel.

With two more vessels due to sail within 48 hours to continue the challenge to Israel's Gaza blockade, Israel's deputy defence minister Mattan Vilnai stressed the Israeli commando raid on the pro-Palestinian flotilla succeeded in its mission - although the loss of life was regrettable. Mistakes were made but the IDF would learn from them and defend the blockade in other ways, he said.

He dismissed rising demands at home for the defence minister Ehud Barak to step down.

debkafile's military sources report Israeli concerns that on top of strong diplomatic reprisals, Turkey may resort to military steps along with Hizballah and Hamas for the Israel Navy's seizure Monday, May 31, of the Turkish vessel leading the flotilla in which 9 activists died, 33 injured.  Turkish chief of staff Gen. Ilker Basbug was recalled urgently to Ankara from a visit to Egypt after Ankara threatened "unprecedented and incalculable" reprisals. Greece halted its joint exercise with Israel in protest.

Released finally 12 hours after the event, IDF video shots do not show how soldiers armed with paint balls and pistols managed to kill 9 pro-Palestinian activists (Ankara claims 15 Turkish dead) and injure at least 34 aboard the Turkish Marmora. Of 6 injured soldiers, two are in critical condition.
Prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, who is flying straight home from Canada, will have to fill in the gaps left by his official spokesmen.

The death of Khalil Sultan, a high-ranking general of the IRGC's al Qods external terror branch, in the exclusive Damascus district of Al Mezzeh Sunday, May 16 is now revealed by French intelligence and Syrian exile sources in Paris to have been assassination by an unknown hand. Syrian and Iranian government circles are deeply shocked. Working under deep cover, Khalil ran IRGC covert operations in Damascus and Beirut.

Western sources confirm Tehran's report that an Iranian naval patrol Thursday, May 27, detected a US nuclear submarine sailing through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, through which most of the oil produced by Persian Gulf states passes on its way to world markets. The arrival of a US nuclear submarine in the Persian Gulf also ties in with rising Middle East war tensions. It confirms an debkafile's May 20 report that President Obama had decided to boost ...

High officers leading last week's big war game in northern Israel confronted Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and chief of staff Lt. Gen. Gaby Ashkenazi with harsh criticism over the lack of a clear government strategy for dealing with the rising Hizballah threat of aggression and the uninterrupted flow of advanced weaponry from Syria to Hizballah. They said Syrian Scuds reached Hizballah because Israel was over-anxious to keep the borders calm at all costs.

US president Barack Obama reaffirmed his commitment to back up Israel's policy of
nuclear ambiguity in a 20-minute telephone conversation with prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu Monday, May 3 in connection with the UN conference on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Ahead of the start of proximity talks with the Palestinians, Obama assured Netanyahu that the joint US-Egyptian drive for a nuclear-free Middle East would not apply to Israel before a comprehensive peace is forged with all its neighbors.