➡️ US Officials: Israel's Iron Dome air defense system could be overwhelmed in event of full-scale war with Hezbollah

Tel Aviv has indicated to the Washington that it’s preparing for a possible land, air invasion into Lebanon, shifting resources from southern Gaza to northern Israel.

Israel's goals in a potential offensive would include pushing Hezbollah back and creating a buffer zone in southern Lebanon.

However, Hezbollah's arsenal is estimated to include around 150k rockets, missiles - far larger and more sophisticated than Hamas'.

[RT]

Update on (https://t.me/warfareanalysis/55311)

The Israeli Foreign Ministry summoned the Armenian Ambassador for a conversation with a reprimand after a statement from Yerevan on recognition of the Palestinian state

[RT]

Reports about the cancelation of the meeting that was planned between resistance factions and Palestinian Authority in China.

The reason is Mahmoud Abbas’ refusal to allow the Fatah movement to participate.

[ST]

Declassified UK:

A formerly top secret UK report shows Britain’s territory on Cyprus formed a key part of NATO’s surveillance and nuclear capabilities in the Mediterranean during the Cold War, despite knowing this was “not consistent” with the island’s non-aligned stance.

The UK used its bases in Cyprus, which it retained after the island achieved independence in 1960, as key NATO assets despite Cyprus’s declared non-alignment between East and West.

Key takes:

• Independent Cyprus’s first president, Archbishop Makarios, was prominent supporter of Non-Aligned Movement during Cold War

• But British territories on Cyprus were “of great strategic importance” to NATO

• Top secret map shows UK ran “NATO communications station” in Cyprus outside of British base areas

• Covert surveillance operations were carried out from British Cyprus “on behalf of NATO”

• Targets for Cyprus-based nuclear-capable Vulcan bomber squadrons were coordinated with NATO

• UK planners cautioned “it is important to avoid drawing attention to the NATO implications of military activities” on British Cyprus


A map of UK sites and installations in Cyprus in the report identified Cape Greco, a headland east of the UK’s Eastern SBA, Dhekelia, as a “NATO Communications station”.

This station was in Cyprus proper, outside of the SBAs and other “retained sites”. It is likely the government of Cyprus did not know about it.

“Cyprus provides a most valuable facility to maintain surveillance coverage of the Eastern Mediterranean,” the report continued. “Many of these operations are on behalf of NATO, others are for national or for US/UK purposes, and by their very nature can be carried out from Cyprus without offending Cypriot sensitivities.”

Thus “Cypriot sensitivities” were not offended since these activities could be undertaken from UK land. “There are great advantages in being able to carry out covert surveillance from UK sovereign territory,” the report noted.

The military aircraft positioned at RAF Akrotiri, the huge air base on the SBAs which remains a key hub for UK operations, were also a boon for NATO.

“In particular the ground radars and lightning interceptor fighters of the air defence system make a valuable contribution to NATO,” it continued. “The radars are linked to the NATO network thereby effectively extending NATO’s early warning coverage and interception capability.”

They comprised, the report noted, “a valuable extension of NATO’s air defence system”.

[RT]

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On Thursday, December 15, 2016, armed men assassinated the man who was in this car in Sfax, Tunisia.

Who was he? What’s his relation to Hamas drone program? Here’s his story