According to the message, delivered via Russian mediators, attacks on Syrian military objects will be met with Scud missiles launched at Israeli military (IDF) bases. If Israel attacks civilian infrastructure, Syrian missiles will be fired at Israel's Haifa port and petrochemical plant. The missiles will be launched without any prior notice, the statement said.

The notice follows Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's March 20 statement that protecting its borders is the right and obligation of every nation.

"Syria's forceful response to the Israeli attacks changed the rules of the game," said Syrian Ambassador to the UN Bashar al-Jaafari. He added that the threatened response is "appropriate and in line with Israel's terrorist operation," and that Israel "will now think a million times [before striking again]."

On March 17, Israeli military reported several airstrikes on Syrian territory; they were followed by several anti-aircraft missiles launched at Israeli warplanes flying over Syrian territory. One of the missiles was reportedly intercepted by Israel's Arrow missile defense system. However, Syrian authorities claim they successfully downed an Israeli plane not far from Damascus.

Following the incidents, Israel threatened to conduct strikes specifically to destroy Syrian anti-air batteries.

According to Israeli leadership, the airstrikes are aimed at fighting advanced weapons smuggling to Hezbollah in Lebanon across Syrian territory.

"Our politics is very consistent," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in the wake of the airstrikes. "When we know about an attempt to smuggle weapons to Hezbollah, we do whatever we can to prevent this from happening, provided we have sufficient information and capabilities to react."

According to media reports, during his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Netanyahu vowed to continue fighting attempts to smuggle weapons to Hezbollah through Syria. Netanyahu denied reports that he was told to cease military operations in Syria.

Israel and Syria have not engaged in any kind of serious military confrontation since civil war broke out in Syria six years ago. The sporadic, over-the-border fire is dismissed by Israeli authorities. There are about 800 Soviet-made Scud missiles, capable of delivering half a ton of explosives, located in Syria. </s> The Syrian leadership has sent messages to Israel warning that any further strikes by the IDF on targets within Syria’s borders would be met with Scud rockets fired deep into the Jewish state, the Lebanese newspaper Al-Diyar reported Saturday.

The Assad regime conveyed the message to Israel via Russian mediators, the report said.

According to the report, Syria warned that Israeli strikes on Syrian military targets would be met with the firing of Scud missiles capable of carrying half a ton of explosives at IDF bases, while an attack on civilian targets would see Syria launching a counter strike on the Haifa port and the petrochemical plants in the area.

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The report warned that Syria has over 800 Scud missiles and that Syria would not issue any warnings before the missile strikes because Israel does not warn before it hits.

On Wednesday, Israeli jets were reported to have carried out airstrikes near the Syrian capital of Damascus, hours after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to continue hitting weapons convoys and rebuffed claims Russia had ordered the strikes halted.

Syrian opposition news outlets reported that the airstrikes took place in the Mount Qasioun region near Damascus. The Israeli raids targeted Syrian army posts in the area, the reports said, in the fourth round of airstrikes attributed to Israel in Syria in less than a week.

There was no immediate confirmation from Jerusalem, nor any information on casualties or damage.

Tensions escalated between Israel and Syria recently, with Israel reportedly hitting various targets including strikes near the Lebanon-Syria border including a Hezbollah weapons convoy and Syrian military sites.

Also earlier in the week an Israeli drone strike reportedly killed a member of a Syrian pro-regime militia, an attack that came two days after Israeli jets, in an early morning operation, hit an arms transfer meant for Hezbollah near Palmyra, with Syrian air defenses firing missiles at the planes.

One missile was intercepted by Israel’s Arrow missile defense battery, military officials said, in the first reported use of the advanced system. It was the most serious incident between the two countries since the Syrian civil war began six years ago.

On Sunday evening, Syria’s ambassador to the UN Bashar al-Jaafari said Syria’s response to Friday’s strike was a “game-changer.” Speaking on Syrian state TV, Jaafari said the military’s response was “appropriate and in line with Israel’s terrorist operation,” and that Israel “will now think a million times [before striking again],” according to a translation cited by the Ynet news site.

“Syria’s forceful response to the Israeli attacks changed the rules of the game,” he said.

His comments came hours after Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman threatened to destroy Syrian air defense systems for targeting the Israeli aircraft during the bombing run Friday. “The next time the Syrians use their air defense systems against our planes we will destroy them without the slightest hesitation,” Liberman said on Israel Radio.

On Tuesday, Netanyahu denied reports that Moscow had told Israel to end airstrikes in the war-torn country and vowed to continue attacking weapons convoys.

Netanyahu said that he told Russian President Vladimir Putin during a March 9 meeting that Israel will continue to thwart attempts by Iran and its terrorist proxies, such as Hezbollah, to smuggle advanced weapons to Lebanon via Syria.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war raging next door, suffering mostly sporadic incidents of spillover fire that Israel has generally dismissed as tactical errors by Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces. Israel has responded to the errant fire with limited reprisals on Syrian positions.

The skies over Syria are now crowded, with Russian and Syrian aircraft backing Assad’s forces and a US-led coalition striking Islamic State and al-Qaeda targets.

Raphael Ahren and agencies contributed to this report. </s> TEL AVIV – The Assad regime in Syria has sent messages to Israel via Russia threatening that any further strikes by the Israeli military within Syria’s borders will be met with Scud missiles attacks on the Jewish state, the Lebanese newspaper Al-Diyar reported Saturday.

Syria warned that Israeli strikes on its military would result in Scud missiles capable of carrying half a ton of explosives being launched at IDF bases, while strikes in civilian areas would be met with counterstrikes on the northern coastal city of Haifa and petrochemical plants in the region, the report claimed.

According to the report, Syria has over 800 Scud missiles and will issue no advance warning before launching them.

Israeli airstrikes were reported overnight Tuesday in the Mount Qasioun region near the Syrian capital of Damascus, according to Syrian opposition media. The strikes targeted Syrian military outposts and destroyed a military weapons warehouse. The incident marked the fourth round of Israeli airstrikes reported in under a week.

Israel has been targeting Hezbollah-bound weapons convoys in Syria. Tuesday’s strike came hours after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refuted claims that Russia had ordered Israel to stop the strikes.

A recent Israeli strike on a Hezbollah weapons transfer just over a week ago was met with retaliatory missiles from Syria, the first serious cross-border clash since the civil war began. One missile was intercepted by Israel’s Arrow missile defense battery.

Two days later, Syria’s ambassador to the UN Bashar al-Jaafari said on state TV that the retaliation was in response to Israel’s “terrorist operation.”

His comments followed Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman’s warning that “The next time the Syrians use their air defense systems against our planes we will destroy them without the slightest hesitation.” </s> Syria said Israeli jets attacked several military sites near the capital Damascus and the central city of Homs early Monday, lightly injuring several people.

State news agency SANA said that Syrian air defense had intercepted several of the incoming missiles that were fired from Lebanese airspace.

The report said explosions damaged some houses and lightly injured several people in Sahnaya, a neighborhood of Damascus.

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There was no response from the Israel Defense Forces, which rarely comments on reported strikes.

Israel accuses Iran of seeking to set up a military presence in Syria that could be used to threaten the Jewish state.

The Israeli military has acknowledged carrying out hundreds of airstrikes in Syria in recent years on targets linked to Iran, which is backing President Bashar Assad’s regime in the Syrian civil war.

The reported strikes came just hours after an Israeli satellite imagery analysis company said Syria’s entire S-300 air defense system appeared to be operational, indicating a greater threat to Israel’s ability to conduct airstrikes against Iranian and pro-Iranian forces in the country.

Until now, only three of the country’s four surface-to-air missile launchers had been seen fully erected at the Masyaf base in northwestern Syria.

Israel has threatened to destroy the S-300 system if it is used against its fighter jets, regardless of the potential blowback from Russia. </s> JERUSALEM: Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Sunday threatened to destroy Syrian air defense systems after they fired ground-to-air missiles at Israeli warplanes carrying out strikes.

“The next time the Syrians use their air defense systems against our planes we will destroy them without the slightest hesitation,” Lieberman said on Israeli public radio.

Israeli warplanes hit several targets in Syria on Friday, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying the strikes targeted weapons bound for Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah movement.

Syria’s military said it had downed one of the Israeli planes and hit another as they were carrying out the pre-dawn strikes near the famed desert city of Palmyra that it recaptured from jihadists this month.

The Israeli military denied that any planes had been hit. The Syrian government has made similar claims in the past.

An Israeli army statement said “several anti-aircraft missiles” were fired following the raid but that none hit their targets.

One missile was intercepted by Israel’s Arrow air defense system, Israeli media reported.

It was the most serious incident between the two countries since the Syrian civil war began six years ago.

In April 2016, Netanyahu admitted for the first time that Israel had attacked dozens of convoys transporting weapons in Syria destined for Hezbollah, which fought a 2006 war with Israel and is now battling alongside the Damascus regime.

“Each time we discover arms transfers from Syria to Lebanon we will act to stop them. On this there will be no compromise,” Lieberman said Sunday.

“The Syrians must understand that they are held responsible for these arms transfers to Hezbollah and that if they continue to allow them then we will do what we have to do.”

Lieberman said he did not wish “to interfere in the Syrian civil war or provoke a confrontation with the Russians” but that Israel’s security would remain his top priority.

‘Red lines’

 Russia and Israel’s arch-foe Iran has supported Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in the war. Israel opposes Assad, but has sought to avoid being dragged into the conflict.

Israel does not usually confirm or deny individual raids, but it was led to do so this time by the circumstances of the incident, including the firing of the Arrow, Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz told AFP.

He said he believed Assad responded more strongly this time because he feels increasingly confident.

Assad’s position has been strengthened in recent months with his forces reclaiming the whole of Syria’s second city Aleppo, as well as enjoying continuing Russian support.

“He is trying to change the rules. We will not agree to change the rules,” Katz said.

He reiterated what Israel calls its “red lines,” including not allowing advanced weapons to be supplied to Hezbollah and preventing the Golan Heights from being used as a front against it.

Netanyahu has held a series of meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent months to establish a mechanism to avoid accidental clashes between their forces in Syria.

A “hotline” has been set up between the two countries, but Katz said Russia is not notified in advance of an Israeli strike.

“No one knows before what we are doing,” he said.

“We are a sovereign country that acts to protect our security interests.”

He declined to comment in detail on how the “hotline” with Russia worked, but expressed confidence the two countries could continue to coordinate despite their differing interests.

Israel seized most of the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War and annexed it in 1981, in a move never recognised by the international community.

Israel and Syria are still technically at war, though the border had remained largely quiet for decades until 2011 when the Syrian conflict began. AFP </s> CAIRO/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Israeli warplanes fired missiles targeting Syrian military positions in Homs and the Damascus outskirts, the Syrian military said on Monday.

Syrian air defenses confronted the attack, which was launched from Lebanese airspace, the Syrian defense ministry said in a brief report on its Telegram feed.

An Israeli military spokeswoman, asked about the report, said: “We don’t comment on such reports.”

Syrian state news agency SANA said there were reports the attack had caused civilian deaths and injuries in Sahnaya, south of Damascus. It said a baby had been killed in Sahnaya as “a result of the Zionist aggression”.

SANA also cited its correspondent as saying Syrian air defenses had brought down a number of the missiles.

In recent years, Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria that it says have targeted its regional arch foe, Iran, and the Lebanese Hezbollah group, which it calls the biggest threat to its borders.

Iran and Hezbollah are fighting on the side of President Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian war, and Israel says they are trying to turn Syria into a new front against Israelis. </s> DAMASCUS, Syria — Israeli jets fired two missiles from Lebanese airspace toward the outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus early Wednesday, the official Syrian news agency said, in a strike on an unknown target that caused loud explosions.

The news agency, SANA, said the missiles struck the Sabboura area, west of Damascus, and did not cause any casualties. Citing an unnamed military source, SANA did not specify what the missiles struck. Damascus residents reported on social media hearing loud blasts around 2 a.m.

The Israeli military declined to comment, but Israel is widely believed to have carried out a number of airstrikes in Syria in the past few years that have targeted advanced weapons systems, including Russian-made anti-aircraft missiles and Iranian-made missiles. The arms are believed to be destined for the Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah militant group, a close ally of the Syrian government and a fierce enemy of Israel.

The strikes come days after Israeli aircraft hit a machine gun-mounted vehicle inside Syria, killing four Islamic State-affiliated militants inside after they opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli-controlled side of the Golan Heights. The violence appeared to be a rare case of an intentional shooting ambush by Islamic militants targeting Israeli troops.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war raging next door, suffering only sporadic incidents of spillover fire over the frontier that Israel has generally dismissed as tactical errors of the Assad regime. Israel has responded to these cases lightly, with limited reprisals on Syrian positions in response to the errant fire. </s> Following these reports, Benjamin Netanyahu stated "it’s simply incorrect to say the Russians are changing their policy toward us," although what exactly is going on behind closed doors remains a mystery. Over the last week, Israel has only ramped up its strikes in Syria, with multiple missions being carried out including the assassination of a militant leader with close ties to the Assad regime. Since the Syrian civil war began six years ago, Israeli air strikes in Syrian territory were far less frequent, and the Israeli government did not officially even admit that they had been occurring until Syria fired on the IAF's jets nearly two weeks ago.

As far as Syria's ability to carry out such a counterstrike against Israeli targets—there is no doubt that the Assad regime still retains hundreds of Scud derivatives of various origins. These include copies from North Korea and from Iran. During the Syrian civil war that continues today, Assad's forces have used Scuds against their own people.

Israel has an extremely capable anti-ballistic missile defense system that has a multitude of layers aimed at countering everything from small improvised artillery rockets to medium-range ballistic missiles. Still, a barrage of short-range ballistic missiles from Syria, even if they are all intercepted or fail to hit their targets, would result in a major IAF operation to route Assad's ballistic missile capabilities, and could even include the targeting of Syrian command and control or regime targets as well. </s> "The next time the Syrians use their air defense systems against our planes we will destroy them without the slightest hesitation. Israel's security is above everything else; there will be no compromise," Lieberman said on Israeli public radio on Sunday.

His remarks come after Israeli warplanes had attacked several targets in Syria overnight on Thursday.

"The Israeli Air Force carried out airstrikes on a convoy in Syria, carrying a batch of weapons for Hezbollah," Katz said in a statement, distributed by his press service.

The Syrian Army command said in a statement it had downed one of the Israeli Air Force jets that violated its airspace, while the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) denied these claims to Sputnik.

The IDF, in turn, said on Friday that it used the advanced Arrow missile defense system to shoot down a Syrian anti-aircraft missile that was fired at an Israeli jet.

"We have no interest in interfering in the Syrian civil war, we are neither for nor against (President Bashar) Assad, and we have no interest in clashing with the Russians," Defense Minister Lieberman said on Sunday.

"If the IDF does choose to act, there is a solid reason for it," he stated.

On Friday, just one day after the Israeli Ambassador to Russia Gary Koren presented his credentials to President Putin, he was summoned for clarifications over the strikes.

Also on Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged Israeli air strikes in Syria, making a "rare statement on the matter," according to Israeli media. He defended Israel's right to protect itself from the transfer of advanced weapons to Hezbollah, which Israel classifies as a terrorist organization,

"Israel does not usually confirm or deny individual raids, but it may have been led to do so this time by the circumstances of the incident," Israeli international news TV channel i24 News reported on the issue.
In response to several Israeli airstrikes against suspected Hezbollah-related targets inside Syria, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad has threatened wider war with the State of Israel, stating its intention to fire Scud missiles, and specifically target the Israeli city of Haifa. Israel responded by stating that any such actions by the Assad regime, or attacks on its aircraft, will cause Israel to "annihilate" Syrian air defense systems.