Lebanese Media: S. Arabia, Israel Collaborating against Hezbollah

Ibrahim M., nom de guerre Abu al-Nour, confessed that Saudi Arabia is cooperating with Mossad, the Israeli spy agency, to launch military and terrorist attacks against Hezbollah inside the Lebanese territories, Arabic-language al-Safir daily reported.

Ibrahim, who is a defected officer of the Syrian army, added that the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) terrorist group, supported by certain regional states, has played a role in several explosions in Lebanon merely aimed at Hezbollah.

He also confessed to collaboration with ringleaders of al-Nusra Front (recently renamed to Fatah al-Sham Front) terrorist group as an FSA commander in the heights of Arsal town, adding that they had set up a joint operations room to attack the Syrian army’s checkpoints and take the Lebanese military men captive.

Some regional media revealed in July that a well-connected retired general in the Saudi military had traveled to Israel, in the latest indication of a growing link between Tel Aviv and Riyadh which has come to light in recent months.

According to the news outlets, Anwar Eshki held meetings with Israel’s foreign ministry director general Dore Gold Yoav Mordechai and a number of Knesset members.

Local media in Israel called the visit “a highly unusual one,” as Eshki couldn’t have traveled to Israel without approval from the Saudi government.

Eshki and Gold raised an uproar first in June 2015 when they held a publicized joint event in Washington, after meeting several times privately over the preceding year.

Gold attended the event a few days before assuming the role of director general of the Israeli foreign ministry.

Israeli legislator Esawi Freige, who organized Eshki’s meeting with his fellow members of Knesset, shed some light on the trip. “The Saudis want to open up to Israel,” he said.

“This is a strategic step for them. They said they want to continue what former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat started. They want to get closer to Israel. This is clearly evident,” Fregie noted.

He was referring to the former Egyptian president’s negotiations with Israel, which culminated in the Egypt–Israel Peace Treaty in 1979 – the first between an Arab state and Tel Aviv at the time.