Times of London’ quotes Israeli officer as saying Israel prefers “the devil it knows.”

by Jerusalem Post

The scenario that Syrian President Bashar Assad would survive his country’s bloody conflict, yet would hold a lesser role, would be preferred by Israel in contrast to a takeover by rebel factions with Islamic extremist inklings, The Times of London cited an Israeli official as saying Friday.

“Better the devil we know than the demons we can only imagine if Syria falls into chaos and the extremists from across the Arab world gain a foothold there,” one senior Israeli intelligence officer was quoted as saying.

A weakened, but intact Assad regime would be preferable for Syria and the Middle East, the Times reported intelligence sources as saying.

The report quoted another defense official who told the Times that Assad’s tenacity had been underestimated.