Ya'alon warns Lebanon, Syria not to allow attacks on Israel
'Israel will see the governments, regimes and organisations beyond its northern border as responsible for what emanates from their territory,' Defence Minister Moshe Ya'alon said amid rising tensions.
Israel warned Lebanon and Syria on Friday not to allow any attacks on Israel from their soil, hoping to avoid reprisals for an Israeli air strike in Syria that killed an Iranian general and senior Hezbollah fighters.
"Israel will see the governments, regimes and organisations beyond its northern border as responsible for what emanates from their territory," Defence Minister Moshe Ya'alon said in a statement. "(Israel) will exact a price for any harm inflicted on Israeli sovereignty, civilians and soldiers."
Ya'alon arrived at the IDF northern command on Friday in Safed and urged citizens and tourists to continue on with their routines.
"I call on the resident of the north and the tourists in the area to continue with their routine and to adhere to the IDF's instructions if the need arises," said Ya'alon.
"We must be ready and prepared for attempts to challenge us after the calls heard on the other side," said Ya'alon.
Fears of retaliation by Lebanon's Hezbollah or other groups have risen since Sunday's attack, prompting Israel to move troops and equipments towards its northern borders with Lebanon and Syria.
The IDF began to send reinforcements to the north Thursday and Friday amid tensions along the border with Syria and Lebanon in wake of the deadly attack attributed to Israel by foreign media on military officials from Hezbollah and Iran in Syria.
Massive IDF movement is expected in the upcoming day within Israel’s northern communities, top IDF sources told Ynet. The forces, they said, are part of the IDF’s attempt to address growing tensions in the north, which have seen both Hezbollah and Iran vow to take revenge for the alleged Israeli attack.
A senior Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander said Israel will be punished for killing one of its generals in the airstrike in Syria that also killed six Lebanese Hezbollah fighters.
Nasser Soltani says "Israel will certainly pay for what it did." He spoke during a ceremony Wednesday for Brig. Gen. Mohammad Ali Allahdadi, who will be buried in his hometown of Sirjan in southeastern Iran on Thursday.
Soltani is quoted by the state TV as saying Allahdadi was "martyred while performing his advisory mission" in Syria.
The Kuwaiti newspaper Al Rai reported Thursday morning that – despite an Israeli official denying the claim to Reuters – Israel was well aware of who was in the convoy and that the Iranian general was the intended target.
