There are a great many in our country who seem to have a hatred of the tiny nation state of Israel. I must admit that I myself have some reservations about the nation. I still harbor resentment resulting from their "accidental" air attack on the "Liberty." Our Navy should and could have taken out at least an armored regiment in response to that travesty. It would have had little or no effect on the outcome of Israel's war with the Mohammedans that was raging at the time. With that said, I also know for sure that many Mohammedans would already have perpetrated a "second Holocaust" on Israel if they had the capability. The whole region is a mess and it is really hard for me personally to have any sympathy with any of them. Now with that being said one has to ask themselves whether the survival of Israel is a matter of concern for those of us in the Western Democracies.
It is true that if Israel was destroyed tomorrow by the forces of Mohammad very little would change in our country. We would still have to get up Monday morning and go to work. There would be moaning and gnashing of teeth and indeed some rejoicing in some sectors, but in reality nothing much would change for us here. Why then is the survival of the state of Israel, with our military assistance if necessary, important? Read on and lets discuss the issue.
The survival of Israel holds a good deal of cultural importance to a large segment of western society. I am speaking of course of the Holy Sites of Christendom that are in Israel. A military victory of the Muslim nations over Israel may well place these sites in danger of destruction. It is undeniable that there are those followers of the Prophet that are destructive to the shrines of any "competing" religion. This have been observed in modern times with the destruction of ancient sites by the Taliban. Indeed there are some in the Jewish and Christian community that would be happy to destroy holy Islamic sites, but that of course has not, nor will it likely, happen. Most Jews and Christians generally don't have a "medieval" mindset, while unfortunately many Mohammedans (majority? Who Knows?) do. This reason alone is enough for many to have an interest in the survival of Israel.
Getting away from emotions for a moment; it is important that Israel survives for strategic reasons of interest to the western world. At this time Egypt and Jordan have reached an accommodation with Israel that is beneficial. Syria does not have the military capability to take on Israel alone and Lebanon is in a state of chaos. The other Muslim nations in the region do not seem to have any interest at this time in confronting Israel and Iran has not the force projection capability to seriously threaten Israel conventionally. The possibility of some sort of missile strike from Iran is not out of the question however. Nor is an attack by an Iranian proxy with some sort of wmd out of the realm of possibilities. Israel still finds herself in a precarious position surrounded by enemies and potential enemies. For instance, there is no guarantee that Egypt will remain in the hands of the current type of regime. It is not a far stretch to imagine some sort of "Islamic Revolution" that puts radicals in a position of power would come to pass. Radicals bent on the destruction of Israel. Then we would have a scenario that is quite different than the current one. The radicals in Egypt would align themselves with Hamas obviously, radical elements in Lebanon, make an accommodation with Syria and Jordan (with full aims of overthrowing those secular regimes after Israel is dealt with I would wager), and ally themselves with Iran and other radical elements. It is not out of the question that they would receive also some economic and military aid from the likes of Russia and China. Here is where it gets really tricky. The Suez Canal would be under the control of a radical regime resulting with the canal most likely being damaged(blocked) before Israel or any western power could do anything much to stop it. In that event the United States and other western nations would be obligated to take the region and attempt to repair and reopen the canal. The Suez Canal is after all of great strategic importance to Europe, much more than to the United States and other nations in the Americas. Here is where an intact Israel comes into play. Obviously there would have to be landings via the sea and air in the region and it would be much easier to land unopposed and indeed aided by Israel than to attempt to land on hostile beaches or airdrop troops in hostile territory. So you see, there is great strategic importance to the West in the survival of Israel. We in the West must insure that she remains armed to the teeth and ready and willing to support us in the eventuality of a military action.
Of course there are alternative actions that may occur in the above scenario. The most likely is that Israel herself would take the Sinai Peninsula and secure the canal. The question would be would her armed forces take the area before damage is done to the canal that would make repairs a long term undertaking?
This scenario may be "pooh poohed" by a good many and may not be an accurate prediction of things to come in the region, but it is certainly not beyond the range of possibilities.
We should therefore remain vigilant.
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