As eyes continue to stay on the Middle East amidst concerns about a potential escalation between Israel and Iran, the former NATO Supreme Allied Commander shared his thoughts on what might happen.
James Stavridis, the former top official for NATO, shared with “The Cats Roundtable” on WABC 770 AM that he doesn’t think Iran or Israel want to be in a long and ongoing war at this time.
“Neither side, neither Israel nor Iran, wants a broad war at this moment,” Stavridis said. “Neither country is ready for it.”
While assassination attempts, bombings and missile strikes between the two countries have made headlines in recent weeks, Stavridis says he doesn’t see a broader war happening.
The interview from Stavridis also comes as fighting between Israel and Hamas comes close to one year. Hamas and Hezbollah in Lebanon are both backed by Iran, and many have warned of a potential expansion in fighting as tension between the two nations grows worse.
“I think you are going to see, and this is your point, more of this kind of shadowboxing than actual big punches landing,” Stavridis said in the interview.
The interview also comes days after the bodies of six Hamas hostages were found by the Israeli Defense Forces in Gaza. The six hostages were identified as Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Carmel Gat, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Ori Danino.
The Israeli military said that they were killed shortly before Israeli forces were able to rescue them. They were found in a tunnel beneath the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
Since the news of the six hostages being found dead, many have started to voice their frustration, saying they could have been returned safely in a cease-fire deal.
A survey published Thursday by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs found that 60% of the American public backs the US “supporting Israel militarily until the hostages are returned.”
The survey also found that 49% support the US “supporting Israel militarily until Hamas is dismantled or destroyed.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made it clear that he intends to end Hamas, sharing this during his speech before Congress last month.
“The war could end tomorrow if Hamas disarms, surrenders, disarms, and returns all the hostages,” Netanyahu said. “But if they don’t, Israel will fight until we destroy Hamas’s military capabilities, end its rule in Gaza, and bring all our hostages home.”