Israel no longer sees Iran biggest threat

Israel’s military intelligence does not consider Iran the number one threat to the country anymore, media reports said Monday. 

Global challenges are the most important threats the country will face in 2023, according to the Hayom newspaper that said Iran is regarded as the second most serious threat.

Iran is not the focal point but a part of an inter-connected puzzle, said the intelligence report cited by the newspaper.

US-China tension is the main dynamic, which is expected to escalate in 2023 that will inform global challenges Israel would have to address, it said.

Furthermore, the ongoing war in Ukraine and the disruption of the global supply chain because of the situation in China are also considered major global challenges.

The report highlighted that skyrocketing food prices have particularly hit Egypt and Jordan hard.

It said the risk of instability in the West Bank and Gaza is the third most serious threat that Israel might have to deal with in 2023.

Meanwhile, leaders of Israeli opposition parties met in parliament and issued a statement vowing to work together against the right-wing, religious government led by Benjamin Netanyahu.

“We will work together to fight this backward, anti-democratic government that is being established, which will dismantle Israel from within,” said party leaders Yair Lapid of Yesh Atid, Benny Gantz of National Unity, Merav Michaeli of Labor, Avigdor Liberman of Yisrael Beytenu and Mansour Abbas of Ra’am.

“When we return to power, we promise to cancel any extremist legislation that harms democracy, security, the economy or Israeli society,” they said.