Israel will continue to “prevent the transfer of advanced weapons to Hizbullah” and “in the next war there will be a clear address: the Lebanese government,” Israeli army chief Gadi Eisenkot said on Sunday.
“There’s been quiet on the Lebanese border for over a decade. The security situation and peace are common interests to both Israel and Lebanon, but the IDF (Israeli army) will not be deceived by the tranquility,” Eisenkot said at a ceremony marking a change in the Northern Command, in remarks published on the English-language website of The Jerusalem Post newspaper.
“Hizbullah continues to arm itself and grow inside Lebanon. We will continue to act decisively to thwart these efforts and will continue to prevent the transfer of advanced weapons to Hizbullah,” he added.
“In the next war there will be a clear address: the Lebanese government,” Eisenkot said, adding that “Hizbullah continues to violate U.N. resolutions and prepare themselves for war.”
“In light of the changes in Lebanon and Syria, the IDF will act to prepare for any scenario,” Eisenkot went on to say.
Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman meanwhile threatened Sunday to destroy Syrian air defense systems after they fired ground-to-air missiles at Israeli warplanes carrying out strikes.
Israeli warplanes hit several targets in Syria on Friday, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying the strikes targeted weapons bound for Hizbullah.
In April 2016, Netanyahu admitted for the first time that Israel had attacked dozens of convoys transporting weapons in Syria destined for Hizbullah, 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 Hizbullah and that if they continue to allow them then we will do what we have to do,” he added.
