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Gantz added, in an interview with “Fox News,” that Israel has identified many targets within Iran, which would damage its ability to develop an atomic bomb.
He said in his first interview with an American media: “If the world stops them sooner, that is very good, but if not, then we must remain independent and we must defend ourselves.”
Intelligence assessments indicate that Iran will likely target Israel, using proxies in Syria and Lebanon, during 2021, according to Fox News.
Gantz said the Iranian-backed Lebanese group “Hezbollah” has hundreds of thousands of missiles, as a secret target map shared with “Fox News” shows many of the missiles installed between civilian areas along the Israeli border.
“This is a map of objectives. Each of them has been examined legally, practically and by intelligence, and we are ready to fight,” Gantz added.
The IDF annual intelligence report indicated that Israel was preparing for several days to fight with Hezbollah, and local media reports indicated that 3,000 Lebanese targets would be attacked every day during the upcoming conflict, with the aim of killing others. 300 Hezbollah fighters every 24 hours.
Israel is expected to continue targeting Iranian-backed groups in Syria, which Gantz says are helping facilitate arms transfers to Lebanon, according to the network.
Since early 2020, Israel has bombed more than 500 Iran-linked sites in Syria with airstrikes, according to Israeli Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi.
Last week, US President Joe Biden ordered an additional airstrike in Syria after several missile strikes against US interests in Iraq.
While the Biden administration has indicated its willingness to return to the Iran nuclear deal, Israeli officials from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Gantz believe that the question of Iran’s powers must be addressed in any future deal.
“American policy must be American policy, and Israeli policy must remain Israeli policy,” Gantz said.