Israeli strike on Syria response to Iranian attack on Israeli ship: Israeli media
RAMALLAH, Palestine (North Press) – On Monday, both the Israeli Kan 13 channel and Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said that that Sunday attack attributed to Israel on Damascus’ outskirts was carried out against Iranian targets in Syria.
The Israeli outlets pointed out that the strike was a response to what is believed to be an Iranian attack on an Israeli-owned ship in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday.
The strikes are the seventh since early 2021.
Kan 13 quoted an Israeli security source who said that it was inevitable to respond to the bombing of the Israeli cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman.
A meeting was held on Sunday regarding this issue with the participation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Minister of Defense Benny Gantz, and the Chief of General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces Aviv Kochavi in addition to major Israeli officials of security apparatuses.
The attack of the Israeli ship “is indeed an action by Iran, it is clear. Iran is Israel’s biggest enemy and we are striking them across the region,” Maariv newspaper cited Benjamin Netanyahu as saying.
“Israel has told the United States that Jerusalem will not allow Tehran to have nuclear weapons, no matter what the terms are of any potential multinational deal,” he added.
The Israeli Walla! website reported that Israeli Defense officials believe that the Iran Revolutionary Guards’s navy fired one or two missiles at the ship while it was near the Strait of Hormuz, knowing that it was Israeli-owned.
The website pointed out that Iranian Revolutionary Guards hit the ship seeking revenge for the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh east of Tehran and the one-year anniversary of the US assassination of former IRGC Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani in January, as Iran has planned for more attacks.
The report mentioned that Israeli’s security establishment has recently received letters that tension among the Iranian security forces has accumulated after the assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh and Qassem Soleimani, so they conducted several attacks, some of which were foiled by the Israeli intelligence services.
One of the officials told the website that the targeting of the Israeli-owned ship Helios Ray did not surprise officials in Israeli’s security establishment.
“Those who hit the Israeli-owned ship did not aim to sink it but to send Israel a message regarding Tehran’s future intentions; it is specialist action,” he added.
According to Israeli security’s speculations, Quds Force Commander Esmail Qaani is seeking revenge in line with accumulated tensions and outrage among the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Forces.
There are warnings regarding potential Iranian attacks to be conducted against Israeli ships in the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf aiming to hit Israeli targets, according to Israeli officials.
“This is not an inevitable end, Israel will not turn a blind eye to the incident, the talks are indicating a dangerous action,” an Israeli security official said.
The Israeli security discussion regarding the growing tension against Iranians is ongoing. “If Iran is condemned, the incident warrants a response,” an official told the website.
Kochavi stressed that the Israeli army has been working and would act against “the threats it faces near and far, and it will do so thanks to the specific intelligence provided by the intelligence service.”
“Iran is not only a nuclear threat, but also it spreads terror against several targets,” he said.