Barak tries to calm Syrian nerves over Israeli drill

"The home front drill commencing tomorrow is an exercise that has been in the works for several months. Israel has no intentions to launch any such operation or any others. Messages of reassurance have been

communicated across to all relevant parties," so reiterated officials in the Prime Minister's Office on Saturday night after several days of exacerbated tensions with Damascus.  

"The sole objective of the exercise is to drill the home front," said the sources in PM Ehud Olmert's office, who added that the simulation of chemical and other attacks on Israeli cities was part of the lessons being implemented after the Second Lebanon War.

Defense Minister Ehud Barak led the effort to scale back rising tensions on the Syrian border, saying that Israel "has no interest in a deterioration of the sensitive situation on the northern front – and the other side knows this."

Speaking at an event honoring wounded IDF soldiers in Tel Aviv earlier in the evening, Barak said that Israel believes that its adversary also has little interest in such deterioration.

However the minister also said that while Israel was closely monitoring the situation, it was "primed and prepared" for any development.

Si vis pacem, para bellum

"We seek peace and do not long for war. It is well known that he who seeks peace – should prepare for war," said Barak, quoting the known Latin saying. Preparedness for war, he said, meant the defense forces must be at their "maximal state of aptitude and capable of achieving a decisive and unambiguous victory in any military conflict."

"In modern warfare – the preparedness of the home front and its fortitude are an essential component in any victory, and therefore this week we will drill the Israeli home front in a wide-reaching exercise the likes of which they have not seen in years," the defense minister pledged.

Barak's deputy, Matan Vilnai, will brief the government on Sunday on the course of the exercise. All State offices are also expected to take part in the drill.

Hanan Greenberg contributed to this report