ISRAEL CONCERNED BY US FAILURES IN IRAQ:

While the Israeli government is officially keeping mum on the advance of radical Islamist forces in Iraq, local security officials are voicing concern over US failures in Mesopotamia and what that means for the Jewish state. The armies of the Islamic State in Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) look poised to seize control of most of Iraq, including Baghdad. And this despite the fact they were facing an Iraqi military into which America had poured billions of dollars and five years of training. But when ISIS began to advance, the US-trained Iraqi army “literally left their shirts on the ground and fled,” said Israeli officials. This is not heartening to Israel, considering that most of the concessions she is asked to make in the peace process with the Palestinians are supposedly backed by US security guarantees. For instance, in recent US-brokered peace talks, Israel was asked to eventually relinquish control of the strategic Jordan Valley, where a US-trained pan-Arab force would maintain security. But, the Israelis argued, if US-trained Sunni soldiers in Iraq were unwilling to fight ISIS, how could they be expected to stand firm when fellow Muslims threatened the Jewish state? Nor is it simply a matter of Washington’s failure to properly discern Muslim loyalties. Apparently, the quality of US training when it comes to local Arab forces is wanting, as demonstrated by Hamas’ relatively easy 2007 takeover of the Gaza Strip from the US-trained and equipped Palestinian Authority security forces. (Israel Today)