Israeli Prime Minister: Iran Has Crossed the Red Line

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, stated in a video regarding his country's attacks on Syria early Thursday that "Iran has crossed the red line" and that "Israel's response was commensurate with that." In the video recorded at the end of an emergency cabinet security meeting at Israel's Ministry of Defense, Netanyahu added that his country's army "carried out very extensive attacks against Iranian targets in Syria." According to him, "with the proper preparedness of Israeli forces, in both offensive and defensive aspects, Iran's actions failed and no rockets hit Israeli territory." Netanyahu further stated that "the people of Israel are proud of their army and trust it" and that his country "will not allow the military presence of Iran in Syria to be established." He also said, "Yesterday, we sent a clear message to the regime (Bashar) Assad that Israel's military action was against Iranian targets in Syria, but if the Syrian army acts against Israel, we will also act against the Syrian army." The Israeli Prime Minister then called on the international community to "prevent the establishment of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in Syria" and to unite with Israel to "cut off the evil arms that are expanding everywhere." Netanyahu concluded the video by saying, "Anyone who wants to harm us, we will harm them sevenfold, and anyone who is ready to harm us, we will act against them first; this is what we have done in the past and will do in the future." Despite the Prime Minister's statements, no reports leaked to Israeli media regarding the issues raised in the Israeli security cabinet meeting at the Tel Aviv Ministry of Defense. However, ahead of this meeting, reserve General Yoav Galant and the Minister of Housing told their country's media that "an opportunity has arisen for Israel to root Iran out of Syria" and added, "We will take advantage of this opportunity." Nevertheless, Avigdor Lieberman, the Israeli Defense Minister, stated early Thursday that there would be no definitive victory in this new conflict. The Israeli army confirmed early Thursday that it attacked the deployment centers of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and some Syrian facilities. Colonel Ronen Manlis, the spokesman for the Israeli army, described the country's air force operation as a response to the Quds Force's attempt to launch rockets at the Israeli front line. According to him, forces under Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force, fired Fajr 5 and Grad rockets from launch pads towards military vehicles located 40 to 50 kilometers south of Damascus, but none reached Israeli territory, and there were no casualties or damages. The spokesman for the army and also Avigdor Lieberman stated that sixteen of the rockets fired from Syria landed in Syrian territory, and four other rockets were intercepted and destroyed by Israeli air defense systems. According to Colonel Manlis, "The Israeli bombing operation in response to the rocket fire was carried out based on precise intelligence work and was a small part of Israel's capabilities and delayed Iran's plans for establishment in Syria for a long time." Colonel Manlis also stated that when the Quds Force forces inspect the sites that were bombed, they will see that it will take several months to rebuild these centers, but Israel will act whenever necessary. In this context, the Syrian army command stated on Thursday that the country is facing a new phase of enemy aggression. This statement claims that three people lost their lives in the Israeli attacks early Thursday. However, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported on Thursday afternoon that at least twenty-three people were killed in these attacks, five of whom were Syrian. However, the nationalities of the other eighteen deceased were not mentioned. Reports from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which tracks events in the seven-year and three-month Syrian civil war from Britain, are generally considered credible. Meanwhile, according to Israeli media, the living conditions of people in northern Israel have continued relatively normally despite concerns, but "all" hotels and recreational centers in areas bordering Syria reported a sudden downturn in business and the emptying of these centers. The military crisis between Israel and Iran, which entered a new phase three months ago and shifted to direct military action between the two countries from Syria early Thursday, comes as Israel has expressed deep satisfaction this week over the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA, the Iran nuclear deal with world powers. Benjamin Netanyahu, in addition to strengthening his alliance with Donald Trump, the President of the United States, has emphasized the consensus of his government with the leader of Russia as well. Netanyahu, after a meeting on Wednesday with Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, in Moscow, told his country's media that he feels that Russia is still not restricting Israel's freedom of action in Syria. Bahrain's support for Israel against Iran Meanwhile, world powers have expressed concern over the Israel-Iran crisis and called for patience from both sides, mostly condemning what they termed Iran's rocket attacks on Israel. However, Bahrain's support, an Arab country on the Persian Gulf, for Israel is a rare and clear action. The Bahraini Foreign Minister tweeted on Thursday that every country, including Israel, has the right to defend itself against Iran's actions. However, high-ranking military and political officials in Tehran have remained silent regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran's connection to the rocket attacks on Israel early Thursday. However, according to Sputnik Russia, Abolfazl Hassan Beigi, a member of the Iranian Parliament's National Security Commission, stated that these attacks were not in Iran's favor but rather a Syrian response to previous Israeli aggressions. Mohammad Javad Jamali Nobandegani, another member of this commission, also told the Iranian Parliament's news agency on Thursday that Iran does not have a military base in Syria, unlike Russia, and its presence in Syria is advisory, and Israel is lying with the intent of creating Iranophobia. In this context, two Iranian parliament representatives denied the role of the Revolutionary Guard in the rocket attacks on Israel.