From Munich 1938 to Damascus 2013, nothing has changed

Iran isn't the only country watching the West doddle on Syria. So is Israel. Britain's backing out of a Syria strike, and Hussein Obama's obvious hesitation to do the job are going to encourage an Israeli attack on Iran.

But the Iranians are not the only ones watching.  So is Israel.  Whether or not Israel decides to act against Iran could be determined in large part by how the world acts now against Syria.  And the British parliament's vote Thursday against military action is not a great sign.

"The international stuttering and hesitancy on [a] Syria [strike], just proves once more that Israel cannot count on anyone but itself,"  Economy and Trade Minister Naftali Bennett wrote on his Facebook page on Friday. "From Munich 1938 to Damascus 2013 nothing has changed. This is the lesson we ought to learn from the events in Syria."

And Bennett's post came even before Obama's address in which he said that the US would conduct a limited military action against Syria, but only if Congress approved it when it came back from its summer recess on September 9.  

"Trust us," the world – led by the US -- has urged Israel for years on Iran.  "We will deal with Iran, we will not allow them to get nuclear weapons. Even if they do, there is little chance they will use them. Nobody is that crazy."

Really? Syrian President Bashar Assad is that crazy, using chemical weapons in broad daylight against his own people, even though he knew he would be held culpable.

Yet the world dithers. 

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The Iranians, watching this show, are surely calculating what action they could expect if they run at full speed to nuclear capability.  One could not blame them for concluding that the French will speak tough, the British will vote military action down in parliament. and Obama will bring the matter to Congress for a vote if Congress is in session. If not, he will wait patiently until Congress re-convenes to ask its opinion.

That kind of international dallying is not the type of behavior that will instill confidence in Israeli leaders that they can count on the world when it comes to Iran.

Besides, if this is how the world acts when some 1,429 people are gassed, how should we expect them to act if Iran just crosses the nuclear threshold, but doesn't kill anybody yet?

If gassing 1,429 people, including at least 426 children, as US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday, does not lead to a military assault, will the crossing of the nuclear threshold – when no one is killed – trigger a response?

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