Israel Should Prepare for Direct Confrontation with Turkey, Report Warns
A report by the Nagel Committee, a commission established by the Israeli government in August 2024, has highlighted the risk of a direct confrontation with Turkey, which is seeking to revive the Ottoman Empire. The report, presented to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, emphasizes the potential for Turkey to form alliances with Syrian groups and engage in proxy wars, increasing regional instability.
The report states, “The Syrian threat could escalate to something even more dangerous than the Iranian threat.”
In light of this, the committee has recommended increasing Israel’s annual defense budget by $4.1 billion over the next five years, purchasing additional F-15 fighter jets, tank planes, drones, and satellites, improving the effectiveness of air defense systems, and constructing a security barrier along the Jordan River.
The report was presented on January 6, and Netanyahu commented, “We are witnessing a fundamental shift in the Middle East. The Iran was long our greatest threat, but now new forces are emerging, and we must be prepared for the unexpected. This report is a roadmap for securing Israel’s future.”
Turkey and Syria have supported the Palestinian Hamas movement since its attack on Israel in October 2023, which killed around 1,200 Israelis and took approximately 250 as hostages. In response, Israel launched a military operation in the Gaza Strip, which is still ongoing and has included the bombing of residential areas.
In early December, Syrian anti-government forces, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), overthrew the regime of Bashar al-Assad. For the first time since 1973, Israeli troops advanced beyond the buffer zone of the Golan Heights. Israel also carried out airstrikes on the Syrian Navy and airbases to destroy military equipment and weapons, preventing them from falling into rebel hands. Turkey supports the HTS.