Israeli Prime Minister: Israel 'Not Getting Involved' In The Syria Civil War

Israel 'Not Getting Involved' In Syria War -- Al Jazeera

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tells cabinet Israel to stay out of civil war despite recent attacks inside Syria.

Israel aims to stay out of Syria's civil war, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said, despite its recent attacks on targets inside the country.

"Israel is not getting involved in the civil war in Syria, as long as the fire is not directed at us," Netanyahu told his cabinet in broadcast remarks on Sunday.

His comments came a week after fierce fighting erupted between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces and opposition rebels near the UN-patrolled armistice line of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Sunday marked the 46-year anniversary since Israel first occupied the territory during the 1967 war.

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Update: Israel aims to stay out of Syria conflict despite Golan friction -- Reuters

My Comment: Israel may want to stay out of the Syrian civil war .... but they do not control what is happening on the ground in Syria, and what Assad/Hezbollah/Syrian rebels/etc. may want to do.

Israel Prepares For War

Israel Prepares As War Clouds Gather -- The Independent

Russia’s insistence that it will supply Syria with S300 missiles has heightened fears that they could fall into the hands of Hezbollah

From the window of Shrifa Schlomitz’s dental surgery at the top of a high rise in the Stella Maris area of Haifa, you can clearly see the three Patriot missile batteries pointing over the Mediterranean Sea towards the Lebanese border, just 30km away.

Dr Schlomitz has no interest in seeing them removed at the moment. Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group with which Israel fought a six-week long war in 2006 – a war that brought Haifa into the firing line of Hezbollah rockets – is too close for comfort again and the group’s deepening involvement in the Syrian civil war has increased the threat of new attacks, according to some.

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My Comment: Israel is not the only country preparing for war.

Israel Braces For The Worst As Syria's Civil War Escalates

Syria's Assad Warns Of War Against Israel

Assad Warns Israel, Claiming a Stockpile of Russian Weapons -- New York Times

BEIRUT, Lebanon — President Bashar al-Assad of Syria displayed a new defiance in a television interview broadcast on Thursday, warning Israel and suggesting that he had secured plenty of weapons from Russia as his opponents falter politically and Hezbollah fighters infuse force into his military campaign.

Mr. Assad spoke in an interview on Al Manar television, which is owned by his ally Hezbollah, the powerful Lebanese Shiite militant group, further punctuating his message of growing confidence that he could prevail in a civil war that is now more than two years old and has claimed more than 80,000 lives.

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More News On Syrian President Assad's Warnings Against Israel, And Israel's Response

Assad: Syria will respond to any future Israeli strike -- Haaretz/Reuters
Syria will ‘strategically’ respond to new Israeli strikes – Assad -- RT
Assad: Arab world prepared to join fight against Israel -- Jerusalem Post
Syria’s Assad ‘confident in victory’ in civil war, warns of retaliation against Israel -- Washington Post/AP
Syrian Leader Mocks Foes and Threatens Israel -- Wall Street Journal
Israel airs concerns as Assad says Syria has received advanced missiles from Russia -- AP
Bashar al-Assad dares foes to take him on -- The Telegraph
Syria says it has advanced missiles from Russia, Israeli says new warfare coming -- USA Today
Former Israel Defense Minister: 'Our Air Force Can Deal With' Russian Missiles in Syria -- Weekly Standard
Analysis: Israel could swoop on S-300 missiles in Syria, but with risks -- Reuters
Syria's new anti-aircraft missiles will be game-changing, say defence analysts -- The Guardian
When Assad shells rebels, Israel goes on alert and learns -- Reuters

Syria Launches Cyberattack Against israel (It Fails)

Haifa coast. Photo by Rami Shalosh

Israeli Official: Syria Attempted To Mount Cyberattack On Haifa's Water Infrastructure -- Haaretz

Attack was meant to be a retaliation for what foreign news sources reported were Israeli airstrikes in Syria, former security adviser Isaac Ben-Israel said.

Syria has attempted to mount a cyberattack on Haifa's water infrastructure but failed, an Israeli official said Saturday.

Professor Isaac Ben-Israel, a former cyber security adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said that the attack took place two weeks ago and was meant as retaliation for what foreign news sources reported as an Israeli strike on a Syrian research center.

"The attack was carried out by a cyber unit within the Syrian army, and it failed," Ben-Israel said at a "Shabbat Tarbut" cultural event in Be'er Sheva.

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More News On Syria's Cyber Attack Against Israel

Israeli Expert Says Syria Cyberattack Foiled -- ABC News/AP
Syria attempted to sabotage Haifa’s water supply -- Times of Israel
Report: Syria cyber attacked Haifa's water system -- YNet News
Syrian cyber attack on Haifa water system thwarted -- Globes
Syrian hackers try to attack Haifa's water supply -- Jerusalem Post
Syria's Electronic Army attempted attack on Haifa's water system -- Global Post
Israeli official: Syrian group tried to disrupt Haifa water system -- UPI

Is Israel Preparing A Bufferzone On The Syrian Side Of The Golan Heights?

A United Nations observation tower overlooking Syria is seen near the Kuneitra border crossing between Israel and Syria, on the Golan Heights May 8, 2013. Photo by Reuters

Israel Maintaining Intense Intelligence Activity In Syria And Working With Local Villagers, Report Says -- Haaretz

New York Times says Israel has discounted the possibility of a buffer zone in Syria as it would be seen as incursion and spark immediate conflict with Assad's forces, but is considering a 'proxy' force in the country.

Israeli forces are "maintaining intense intelligence activity" in Syria and have "quietly" begun working with villagers there unallied to either the rebels or President Bashar Assad's regime amid increasing fears that the Syrian civil war will spill over its borders, The New York Times reported on Thursday.

"Several Israelis who follow Syria closely said Israeli security forces had already been quietly working with villagers who support neither the government nor the rebels, supplying moderate humanitarian aid and maintaining intense intelligence activity," The Times reported.

Israel has said it does not want to intervene in its northern neighbors' civil war, but has maintained that it has the right to defend itself if attacked.

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My Comment: Establishing a buffer zone or arming "friendly" Syrians on the border is not going to work .... a position that the Israelis themselves are fully aware of. But Israeli cannot stay neutral as the fighting spills over into it's territory .... and this is the dilemma that they are now faced with.

Israel's Air Force Chief Warns Of ‘Surprise War’ With Syria

Air Force Chief Warns Of ‘Surprise War’ With Syria -- Times of Israel

Amir Eshel says Assad’s ‘immense arsenal’ could be turned on Israel at any moment, accompanied by rockets from Gaza and Lebanon.

The commander of the Israeli Air Force, which has reportedly bombarded targets in Syria several times in recent months, warned Wednesday that war could break out on Israel’s northern border at any moment, demanding the full engagement of the IAF’s resources.

“If tomorrow Syria collapses, and I am not saying that will happen, we could find ourselves in the thick of it very fast and in great number,” IAF commander Maj. Gen. Amir Eshel said, illustrating how the nature of surprise wars had changed for Israel since the Yom Kippur War in 1973.

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Previous Posts:
Growing Israeli Concerns That The Syrian Civil War Is Spiraling Out Of Control

Senior Israeli Intelligence Official: 'Better The Devil We Know Than Demons We Can Only Imagine If Syria Falls'

Israeli Commandos Filmed In Syria By FOX News

More News On Israel's Air Force Chief Warning Of A ‘Surprise War’ With Syria

General says Israel poised for war on Syria if Assad falls -- Reuters
Israeli air force chief says military needs to be ready for 'surprise war' from Syria -- FOX News/AP
Israel general sees increased risk of surprise war -- Global Post/AFP
IAF Chief: S-300 is En Route to Syria; Surprise War is Possible -- Arutz Sheva

WNU Editor: The above video is a must see.

Israeli Commandos Filmed In Syria By FOX News

Fox News Video Allegedly Shows Israeli Special Forces Returning From A Mission In Syria -- Business Insider

Fox News has published a video which it says "captured, for the very first time, Israeli commandos coming back from inside Syria on a mission."

While not very surprising (if accurate), the video raises some interesting aspects of Israel's role in the 26-month-old conflict on its northern border.

First, Israeli soldiers returning from Syria highlights what the country means by intervention, as apparently sending commandos into Syria doesn't count.

The official Israeli position on Syria is that “Israel has so far refrained from intervening in Syria’s civil war and will maintain this policy as long as Assad refrains from attacking Israel directly or indirectly,” which is what a senior Israeli official told the New York Times this week.

Israel has executed three unilateral airstrikes inside Syria since January — one of which hit Assad's mountain stronghold in Damascus — based on the conviction that it will not allow sophisticated weaponry to be transferred to Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

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My Comment: I expect Mossad to be observing (and spying) WMD movements in Syria .... and producing reports on what is the state of the Syrian civil war that is independent from Syrian/rebel/international reports .... but sending Israeli commandos into Syria .... if this report is true it this is telling me that there is probably more happening on the border than what they are telling us.

Senior Israeli Intelligence Official: 'Better The Devil We Know Than Demons We Can Only Imagine If Syria Falls'

Image from The Guardian

'Israel Wants To Keep Assad In Power' -- UPI

Middle Eastern politics are notorious for their Byzantine twists and conspiracy theories, but Israeli leaders seem to be sending some strange and contradictory signals to Syria these days.

BEIRUT, Lebanon, May 22 (UPI) -- Middle Eastern politics are notorious for their Byzantine twists and conspiracy theories and now Israeli leaders seem to be sending some strange and contradictory signals to Syria these days.

While some threaten to bring down the wrath of God on President Bashar Assad if he retaliates for a string of recent Israeli airstrikes targeting his missile depots, others are indicating they want him to stay on, suitably weakened of course, because an Islamist regime taking over in Damascus would be much too dangerous.

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My Comment: Is Israel supporting the Assad regime in Syria .... I doubt it. But bleeding the Syrian regime and their allies .... namely Hezbollah and Iran .... is in Israel's interest, and is probably the policy that they are pursuing now.

Growing Israeli Concerns That The Syrian Civil War Is Spiraling Out Of Control

Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz in action during a live fire exercise for Israeli army battalion commanders taking place on the Golan Heights, Israel, 04 September 2012. (photo credit: Shay Wagner /IDF/FLASH90)

Officials Warn Of Syria Conflict Quickly Spiraling Out Of Control -- Times of Israel

Army chief says flare-ups could devolve into serious confrontations; minister predicts rockets on Israeli cities ‘only a matter of time’.

IDF Chief of General Staff Benny Gantz toured the Golan near the border with Syria Tuesday, and told lawmakers that tensions in the north could quickly devolve into war.

Other senior officials echoed his worries, with Home Front Defense Minister Gilad Erdan warning that it was only a matter of time before major Israeli cities started getting pounded by rockets.

The statements were made the day before a large Home Front Command drill scheduled for the Ashkelon region in the south of the country, which comes against the backdrop of increasingly harsh rhetoric on both sides of the border.

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More News On Israeli Concerns That The Syrian Civil War Is Spiraling Out of Control

General says Israel ready to attack Syria should Assad fall -- Daily Star
Amid Syria tensions, IAF chief says 'surprise war' a threat -- Jerusalem Post
Israeli Air Force Chief Warns of Syrian Attacks -- ABC News/AP
Israel warns Syria over Golan Heights clashes -- The Australian/AFP
Israel warns Syria: More strikes loom -- Washington Times
General says Israel ready to attack Syria should Assad fall -- Reuters
Israel warns Syria to halt attacks after exchange of fire in the Golan Heights -- Washington Post
Syria-Israel tensions simmer over Golan Heights skirmish -- Deutsche Welle

Israeli Military Chief Warns Syria After Both Sides Exchange Fire On The Golan Heights

Israeli Military Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz, with binoculars, and other officers observe Syria from the Golan Heights. (Tal Manor / Israel Defense Forces / May 21, 2013)

Syria, Israel Exchange Fire On Golan Heights -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Syria said its troops destroyed an Israeli vehicle that crossed into its territory from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Tuesday and warned that any attempt to violate its sovereignty would meet "immediate and firm retaliation".

Israel said the incident took place on its side of the Golan ceasefire line, that the vehicle was damaged but not destroyed, none of its soldiers were hurt and they returned fire.

The clash highlighted the potential for renewed conflict along a frontline that has become increasingly fraught after nearly four decades of calm overseen by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his father.

It also followed Israeli airstrikes near Damascus against suspected missile stockpiles two weeks ago, after which Syria threatened to retaliate.

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More News On Border Skirmishes Between Israel And Syria

Israel warns Syria of 'consequences' if Golan fire continues -- AFP
Israeli military chief issues stark warning after Syria, Israel trade fire across border -- FOX News/AP
Israel warns Syria: More strikes loom -- Washington Times
Israeli, Syrian troops trade fire in Golan Heights -- Washington Post
Syria and Israel in exchange of fire -- BBC
Israel and Syria exchange fire in the Golan Heights -- The Guardian
Syria, Israel exchange fire across cease-fire line -- L.A. Times
Syria Fires at Israeli Vehicle, Raising Fears -- ABC News
Syrian Army fires across border into Israel to retaliate for airstrikes -- Christian Science Monitor
Israel may step up strikes inside Syria, military warns -- USA Today
Gantz: If Assad escalates attacks, he'll bear consequences -- Jerusalem Post
Israeli Military Chief Warns Syrian Regime -- Military.com/AP
Gantz: Assad will pay if he deteriorates situation in Golan -- YNet News
Israeli soldier killed during land mine clearing near Syrian border -- Haaretz
Austria says peackeepers may quit Golan if EU arms rebels -- Reuters

Is Syria Preparing A Missile Strike Against Tel Aviv In Case They Are Attacked Again?

Report: Assad Preparing Missile Strike Against Tel Aviv In Case Attacked Again -- Haaretz

The Syrian army is deploying advanced surface-to-surface missiles aiming at Israel in the aftermath of the alleged Israeli strikes, The Sunday Times reports.

Syria is making preparations to strike Tel Aviv in case Israel launches another attack on its territory, The Sunday Times reported on Sunday.

The Syrian army has begun deploying advanced surface-to-surface missiles, the report said, adding that it has received orders to strike central Israel in case additional attacks against Syria are carried out.

Syria is making preparations to strike Tel Aviv in case Israel launches another attack on its territory, The Sunday Times reported on Sunday.

The Syrian army has begun deploying advanced surface-to-surface missiles, the report said, adding that it has received orders to strike central Israel in case additional attacks against Syria are carried out.

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My Comment: If Syria launches a missile strike against Syria .... here is an easy prediction .... Israel will perceive this as an act of war, and will retaliate with massive missile and airstrikes. Since they will be probably targeting command and control centers, this will be a bonus for Syria's rebels .... a prospect that Assad may .... in the end .... be the reason why he will not retaliate.

Update: Fears grow of clash between Israel and Syria -- L.A. Times

Israeli Threatens To Bring Down The Regime Of Syrian President Assad If He Retaliates

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks into Syria from the Golan Heights in January 2013. (photo credit: Kobi Gideon/GPO/FLASH90)

Israel ‘Will Bring Down Assad’ If He Retaliates For Future Airstrikes -- Times of Israel

Jerusalem conveys unprecedented threat to Syrian president, unnamed officials say; Israeli source tells NY Times further raids contemplated on weapons shipments

Israel has warned Damascus that if President Assad chooses to hit back at Israel for any further Israeli military strikes, Israel will bring down his regime.

An Israeli official confirmed Wednesday night that a dramatic and unprecedented message to this effect had been conveyed to Damascus, Channel 2 news reported.

The report said that Israel’s position to this effect also came up during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s emergency meeting in Russia on Tuesday with President Vladimir Putin, during which Netanyahu also told Putin of Israel’s profound opposition to Russia’s sale of sophisticated S-300 missile defense batteries to Assad.

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More News On Israeli Threats Against The Regime Of Syrian President Assad

Israel Hints at New Strikes, Warning Syria Not to Retaliate -- New York Times
Israeli Official Contacts The New York Times To Warn Of Another Strike On Syria -- Business Insider
Report: Israel warns Assad not to retaliate to airstrikes -- YNet News

My Comment: The Syrian regime is focused on surviving right now ... not starting a war with Israel that would only hasten it's eventual collapse.

Syria’s Conflict Threatens To Spin Out Of Control

Hizballah And Israel Spar As Syria’s Conflict Threatens To Spin Out Of Control -- Nicholas Blanford, Time

A dangerous game of brinkmanship is unfolding in the Middle East pitting Israel against Syria and its militant Shi‘ite ally Hizballah in what threatens to expand the two-year Syrian civil war into a full-blown regional conflict. On three separate occasions since January — two of them within 48 hours of each other last Friday and Sunday — Israeli jets have attacked Syrian military bases, targeting consignments of advanced weaponry supplied allegedly by Iran that were pending transfer to Hizballah across the nearby border with Lebanon. The air raids were unprecedented. Israel has never before risked striking at Hizballah’s Iranian-supplied weapons inside Syria.

For now though, Israel’s gamble seems to have paid off. Other than some initial huffing and puffing from Damascus, no immediate retaliation was forthcoming. But rather than acting as a deterrence, the air strikes appear to have galvanized Syria to promise even greater amounts of sophisticated weaponry to Hizballah and also to announce the launch of a popular resistance campaign to liberate the Golan Heights, the strategic volcanic plateau in the south west corner of the country that has been occupied by Israel since 1967.

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My Comment: Syria and Hezbollah are not in a position to confront Israel .... especially now. But events during war time have a tendency to occur when least suspected .... and in this case .... a Syrian - Hezbollah - Israel conflict cannot be easily discounted.

Israeli Airstrikes On Syria Results In Threats Of Retaliation

Israel Tries To Lower Tensions With Syria After Reports Of Airstrikes -- Washington Post

JERUSALEM — Two small rockets from Syria were lobbed across the boundary into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Monday, and the Israeli military quickly played down the incident as “accidental spillover” from ­Syria’s raging civil war.

The casual dismissal of the stray fire was an example of the pains that Israeli military commanders and government officials were taking to try to lower tensions with their northern neighbor after reports of two Israeli air attacks this weekend on military targets and suspected weapons depots near Damascus, the Syrian capital.

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More News On Israel's Airstrikes On Syria

Israel Tries to Cool Tension With Syria After Missile Attacks -- ABC News
Israel says 'no winds of war' despite Syria air strikes -- Global Post
Syria Warns Israel of 'All Possibilities' After Strikes -- ABC News
Syria Chafes at Airstrikes Blamed on Israel -- Voice of America
Few options for Syria's Assad to strike back after Israeli raids -- Global Post/Reuters
Syria-based Palestinian group says Assad regime has given nod for attacks on Israel -- Washington Post/AP
Syria to permit Palestinians to attack from Golan -- Jerusalem Post/Reuters
Israel used depleted uranium shells in Syria -- Jerusalem Post
Israeli Strikes in Syria Pose Dilemma for Arab States -- Voice of America
Russia and China react to Israel bombing Syria -- Examiner
Turkish PM calls Israel's Syria strikes 'unacceptable' -- CNN
Turkey condemns Israeli air strikes in Syria -- Reuters
Turkey Criticizes Israeli Airstrikes on Syria -- ABC News/AP
Turkey PM: Israeli strikes in Syria 'unacceptable,' only bolster Assad regime -- Haaretz
Israel’s attack turns Syria’s civil war into regional war -- Ashish Kumar Sen, The Washington Times
Syria: Airstrikes ‘open door to all possibilities’ -- Irish Examiner
Former Israeli general: "Best timing" for Syria attack -- CBS
When it comes to Syria and Hezbollah, Israel is walking a tightrope -- Amos Harel, Haaretz
Taking sides in Syria is hard choice for Israel -- Dan Williams, Global Post/Reuters
Israel enforces its red line -- Boston Herald
Israel: We do not hide our red lines -- CNN
Why Israel’s Interceptors Can Stop Syrian Missiles — And Why It Attacked Anyway -- Noah Shachtman, Danger Room

Israel: There Are 'No Winds Of War'

Israel Says 'No Winds Of War' Despite Syria Air Strikes -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Israel played down weekend air strikes close to Damascus reported to have killed dozens of Syrian soldiers, saying they were not aimed at influencing its neighbor's civil war but only at stopping Iranian missiles reaching Lebanese Hezbollah militants.

Oil prices spiked above $105 a barrel, their highest in nearly a month, on Monday as the air strikes on Friday and Sunday prompted fears of a wider spillover of the two-year-old conflict in Syria that could affect Middle East oil exports.

"There are no winds of war," Yair Golan, the general commanding Israeli forces on the Syrian and Lebanese fronts, told reporters while out jogging with troops.

"Do you see tension? There is no tension. Do I look tense to you?" he said, according to the Maariv NRG news website.

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My Comment: Israel's statements are not reassuring. Ordering air strikes and then publicly stating there are "no winds of war" fools no one. Bottom line .... this is a major escalation.

Assad Green-Lights Palestinian “Operations” Against Israel

EXCLUSIVE: Assad Green-Lights Palestinian “Operations” Against Israel On The Golan Heights, Threatens Missile Attacks — Syrian TV -- The Tower

Two mortar shells struck Israel’s Golan Heights on Monday in the early evening local time. Though the IDF described the mortars as accidental spillover from fighting across the border in Syria, they are bound to deepen fears of escalating violence in the region.

On Friday and Sunday Israel reportedly struck Iranian and Hezbollah assets based in Syria. The Israelis have subsequently made extensive efforts to dampen tensions – IAF jets had conducted the air strikes from Lebanese air space, staying out of Syria – but nonetheless Damascus has been signaling that it may escalate the situation.

Most pointedly, Syrian state TV announced today that President Bashar al-Assad was activating Palestinian groups to retaliate against Israel.

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My Comment: Syria`s options to strike back against Israel are limited. Any direct conflict will only result in a massive Israeli counterstrike .... hence tilting the Syrian civil war "balance" towards the rebels. Using surrogates (like the Palestinians) is probably the only option left for the Syrian government.

War Between Israel And Syria?

After The Airstrikes: Scenes Of Devastation Left By Israeli Rockets As Syria Pledges Retaliation For The 'Declaration Of War' -- Daily Mail

* Pictures emerge showing destruction caused to buildings by airstrikes
* Syria pledges to retaliate against Israel 'in its own time and way'
* Threats follow two raids by Israel on Syria in the past three days
* Video footage showed dramatic explosions over Damascus skyline
* Israel says it was targeting Iranian-made missiles on the way to Hezbollah

Bulldozers are clearing away rubble from buildings razed to the ground by Israeli airstrikes near Damascus, as Syria pledges retaliation for the 'declaration of war'.

Pictures have emerged from Syria showing the damage caused to buildings, including some forming part of a chicken farm, by an attack in Al-Hama - close to Jamraya where a research centre was targeted.

Senior government ministers in Syria warned its neighbour it risked engulfing the Middle East in conflict after carrying out airstrikes twice in the past three days.

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More News On Israel's Airstrikes Against Syria

Syrian regime accuses Israel of declaring war after further air strikes -- The Guardian
Syria: Attack on military facility was a 'declaration of war' by Israel -- CNN
Syria: Israeli attacks are 'declaration of war' -- Newsday
Syria warns Israel after 'latest air raids' -- Al Jazeera
Syria threatens Israel, says airstrikes near Damascus open door to ‘all options’ -- Washington Post
Israel strike opens up "all possibilities": Syrian minister -- Reuters
Syria Blames Israel for Fiery Attack in Damascus -- New York Times
Israel airstrikes ‘violate international law,’ Syria says -- France24
Syria Warns Israel of 'All Possibilities' After Strikes -- ABC News
Iran Calls for Stand Against Israel After Syria Attack -- Voice of America
Egypt condemns Israeli attack on Syria -- Reuters
Israeli airstrikes on Syria prompt threats, anger -- USA Today
Israel Targeted Iranian Missiles in Syria Attack -- New York Times
Israel strikes Syrian military research center, US official says -- NBC
Israel strikes Syria, says targeting Hezbollah arms -- Reuters
Israel strikes Syria again -- Politico
Syrian report: Israel bombs outskirts of Damascus for second time in recent days -- Washington Post
Israeli strikes on Syria 'co-ordinated with terrorists' -- BBC
Israel readies for Syrian response -- Politico
Israel has troops and tanks to the Syrian border in case of retaliation by Assad regime -- New York Daily News
Timeline: Israeli attacks on Syrian targets -- Al Jazeera

How Far Will Israel Involve Itself In Syria`s Civil War

Syria: Air Strike Hints At Change In How Far Israel Will Involve Itself In Conflict -- Richard Spencer, The Telegraph

The attack on a Syria-Hizbollah weapons transfer was the second this year by the Israelis. But Richard Spencer says the way the news was confirmed makes this strike very different.

Hovering inside the Lebanese border with Syria, using precision-guided missiles, the Israeli jets took out another piece of a complicated military jigsaw: mobile anti-aircraft batteries that if transferred into Hizbollah's hands would threaten the very air superiority that allows Israel to operate in this way with impunity.

For Israeli military tacticians, for whom Hizbollah is the main conventional threat, this is a useful piece of work. For Israel's political leaders, there is a broader strategic goal.

We can tell this because confirmation has been so public, with officials giving background details within hours rather than hiding from the spotlight as they did when a similar raid was authorised in January.

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My Comment: Israel has made it very clear that there are certain "red lines" that will make them react.In short .... they are passing a message to everyone that they will react .... at least in Syria.

Breaking News: Israel Conducts More Air Strikes Against Syria

Syria: 'Israeli Strike' Hits Army Centre -- Al Jazeera

State television says Israel targeted military base on the outskirts of Damascus; no comment from Israeli army.

Syrian state television has reported that a series of heavy explosions in the capital were caused by Israeli rocket strikes.

SANA said the blasts early Sunday morning targeted a military research centre on the outskirts of the capital. The research centre in Jamraya was the target of an earlier Israeli strike in January.

"The new Israeli attack is an attempt to raise the morale of the terrorist groups which have been reeling from strikes by our noble army," Syrian television said, referring to recent offensives by the forces of Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, against the armed opposition.

The agency did not say whether there were any wounded or dead.

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More News On Israel Conducting A Second Wave Of Air Strikes Against Syria

'Israel rockets' hit Damascus military site -- BBC
Explosions shake Damascus, Syria blames Israel -- Reuters
Syria Accuses Israel of Rocket Attack Near Damascus -- Voice of America
Syrian report: Israel bombs outskirts of Damascus for second time in recent days -- Washington Post
Israel strikes Syrian military research center, US official says -- NBC
Syria says Israel strikes military research center -- USA Today/AP
Damascus suburb rocked by 'Israeli rockets' targeting military research center, Syrian TV reports -- Daily Mail Israeli rockets strike Damascus military site - reports -- RT
Reports of explosions at major Damascus military facility -- The Australian
Second Israeli strike on Syria reported -- Sydney Morning Herald
Syrian TV: Israeli rockets target Damascus suburb -- CNN
Syrian State TV: Israel strikes for second time in as many days -- Haaretz/Reuters
That awkward moment when ... Israel launches airstrikes in Syria -- Foreign Policy

My Comment: The Syrian government does not have the means to respond .... and today's strikes reveal how "neutered" Syria's air defense network has become. So much for U.S. and international defense specialists who have been stipulating (even yesterday) on how formidible Syria's air defense network is.

This Sunday morning air strike at the heart of Damascus also tells me that the Israelis have now made a tactical decision to strike critical targets of the Syrian government .... and to do so repeatedly.