Russian media: Israel seriously concerned by Russian mercenaries in Syria
The Russian news outlet Avia.pro, which is known for its critical attitude towards Israel, says that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will discuss the hundreds of Russian mercenaries in Syria during his upcoming visit to Moscow.
“Several days ago there were unconfirmed reports that hundreds of Russian soldiers who belong to private military companies could show up in Syrian territory. The goal of their appearance in the northern part of Syria will be to purge the major settlements of militants and terrorists, but Israel is seriously concerned about it,” the article on Avia.pro states.
According to the article, it is unclear why Israel would be afraid of Russian private security contractors, but certain “anonymous experts” believe that the presence of “Wagner mercenaries... could seriously restrict Israeli aggressive actions in the Arab republic”.
One such anonymous expert claims that Israel is currently “unchecked” in its attacks against targets in Syria. But the appearance of Russian mercenaries “could create certain difficulties, because the Russian mercenaries will simply not coordinate with Israel, but if [Jerusalem] acts independently, Israel can expect serious problems”.
The article proposes that this is the exact issue that Netanyahu hopes to discuss with Putin, although there has been absolutely no official indication of this.
Recently Bloomberg reported with reference to its own sources that Russian private military companies were planning to support the Syrian government army’s offensive against the city of Idlib.