Around the world, one of the most pressing questions remains: Will Israel strike Iran and if so, when?
One Israeli journalist who gained tremendous insight recently talked to CBN News about what he learned.
Alon Ben-David, military correspondent for Israel’s Channel 10, broke a groundbreaking story revealing how the Israeli Air Force and its pilots are preparing to strike Iran’s nuclear program.
“I was surprised by the level of openness that I found among the Air Force pilots who are usually not that candid,” Ben-David told CBN News.
“Maybe it’s the sense that something is going down soon. Or maybe it’s the sense that they want to prepare the public to have more reasonable expectations for what’s about to happen vis-à-vis Iran,” he reasoned.
Ben-David said while the pilots couldn’t specifically mention Iran, their meeting was clear. They also know it will be far more difficult than past missions destroying nuclear reactors in Iraq and Syria.
“It’s something else much more complicated, combined with the risk of an all-out war, especially in the north with Hezbollah,” he explained. “So I think they wanted to give the public an understanding that it’s not going to be easy for the Air Force.”
Ben-David believes an Israeli attack could lead to all-out war.
“I think we need to be prepared for all options. It is most likely that Hezbollah will join in and will strike Israel. Then Syria could be part of it, Gaza could be part of it. We need to be prepared for a multi-front conflict if we go to Iran,” he said.
A multi-front conflict could affect all of Israel.
“Hezbollah is prepared to shower about 1,000 missiles and rockets on Israel per day of fighting,” Ben-David said. “Among them, about 100 missiles on Tel Aviv, so this city (would be) completely different than it is today.”
“And this is something we haven’t experienced in the 64 years of Israel’s independence,” he said.
“The Home Front Command assesses there will be 1 to 1-1/2 million Israelis on the road when war starts because they will feel unprotected where they live,” Ben-David predicted.
“And who knows where they will go because the whole of the country will be covered by Hezbollah’s arsenal of missiles,” he said. “So these will be tough times for the Israeli public. It’s going to be a challenge.”
So far, negotiations with Iran and six nations, including the U.S., have produced nothing. Ben-David said the next round on May 23 is crucial.
“I think it’s a make or break meeting … and if we won’t see a determined international front against the Iranians or some sort of international effort to persuade the Iranians to step down, I don’t want to be in the shoes of the Israeli prime minister, but he might have to take a tough decision,” Ben-Zion continued.
That decision will take into account the possible outcome of November’s U.S. presidential election.
“So I think that Netanyahu fears that after Nov. 12, Obama is not going to be a partner he can count on,” he said. “And you can see the rough exchange between those two gentlemen is very little trust between those two leaders unfortunately.”
“This is one of the reasons Israel feels that time is running out, that something needs to be decided before November,” he said.
“We are getting very close to the moment of truth. There is a school of thought in most of the Israeli leadership that these are the last moments that anyone can do anything about the Iranian nuclear program,” Ben-Zion said.
He emphasized that Iran is not just a danger to Israel.
“Just imagine the kind of organizations that exist in this region and then imagine them with the proliferation of nuclear weapons. That’s not a safe world to live in,” Ben-Zion concluded. “So I think there’s an international interest in preventing Iran from getting that capability.”
