Israel army returns fire into Syria as troops shot on occupied Golan Heights

Source : SyriaBreaking News Network

Israeli troops were shot at on the occupied Golan Heights, and the army fired into Syria on Monday, the military said. “Gunfire was opened from Syria towards Israel Defense Forces soldiers in the central Golan Heights,”Reuters reported, citing a military statement. “The force retaliated towards the threat and a hit was confirmed.”An Israeli source said that the brief exchange of fire happened near the Quneitra border crossing.The Israeli troops said they were fired on by a Syrian soldier. Hours earlier a Syrian mortar shell landed in the Druze village of Majdal Shams on the Israeli-held Golan, near Israel's security fence.No Israeli casualties were reported in the two incidents.

Israeli jets bomb northern Gaza

Source : Al Akhbar English

The Israeli air force attacked sites in the northern Gaza Strip on Monday, just hours after Palestinian fighters there fired a pair of rockets into Occupied Palestine, witnesses and the army said.

It was the first air strike on Gaza in more than two months and took place as the Israeli government pushed forward with plans to release 26 Palestinian prisoners as part of the so-called peace negotiations with the Western-backed Palestinian Authority.

Palestinian witnesses said the attack targeted a military site used by fighters from the Hamas movement west of Beit Lahiya, but no-one was hurt.

The Israeli army confirmed the air force had struck Gaza.

"In response to rocket fire at Israel, the IDF (military) targeted 2 rocket launchers in Gaza. Direct hits confirmed," the army said on its official Twitter feed.

An earlier army statement said two rockets were fired towards the port city of Ashkelon, one of which was shot down by Israel's so-called Iron Dome Missile Defense System. No damage or injuries were reported.

It was the first air strike since August 14 when the air force bombed the same area also after Palestinians fired rockets from Gaza, in a development which took place just hours after Israel released a first batch of Palestinian prisoners.

The skies above Gaza have been calm for months, although suspected militants fired a mortar shell on Sunday.

During September, there were two instances of rocket fire, but Israel did not respond.

Late on Sunday, Israel approved the release of 26 veteran prisoners who will be freed on Tuesday.

It will be the second such release of Palestinian prisoners under terms of the US-backed direct peace talks which began in late July after a hiatus of nearly three years.

All but one of them were arrested before the signing of the 1993 Oslo Accords, with 21 from the West Bank and the rest from Gaza.

(Reuters)

Israel's Iron Dome shoots down rocket fired from Gaza

Source : http://breakingnews.sy/en

Palestinians in the Gaza Strip fired two rockets at a southern Israeli port city on Monday, a military spokeswoman said. Iron Dome interceptor shot down one while the other fell into the sea, Reuters reported. The pre- dawn salvo came on Ashkelon, about 12km north of Gaza. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the launches.

Iran seeks to import S300

Source : Trend.Az

Iran and Russia are negotiating to boost their ties in the fields of Anti-aircraft warfare and radar systems, the Commander of Khatam al-Anbiya Air Defense Base, Brigadier General Farzad Esmaili said on Sunday.

"Iran seeks to import S300 or some similar missile systems which are completely defensive," he said.

He made the remarks after his meeting with the Russia's Air Force Commander-in-Chief Lieutenant General Viktor Bondarev.

The Russian Commander is in Tehran for talks with senior Iranian military officials.

Bondarev has also met with Iran's air force commander, Brigadier General Hassan Shah-Safi.

His four-day visit is aimed at expanding cooperation in the field of military and missile systems.

Russian Commander Admires Iran's Ability to Optimize S- 200 Defense System

Source : Farsnews

TEHRAN (FNA)- Russian Air Force Commander Lieutenant General Viktor Bondarev praised Iran for its ability to optimize the Russian-made S-200 long-range air defense missile system to cover mid- altitude flying targets, Commander of Iran’s Khatam ol-Anbia Air Defense Base Brigadier General Farzad Esmayeeli said.

"We briefed the Russian Air Force commander on the changes we have made in the (S-200) system and he admired these capabilities," Esmayeeli told reporters after a meeting with Bondarev in Tehran on Sunday.

"We told him that the system was a long-range system completely made by Russia, but we could add up to its capabilities to cover mid-altitude threats by changing the structure and protocol of the S-200 system and using Sayyad-2 missiles and we also told him that this (new) capability has proved successful on the scene of practical tests,", Esmayeeli added.

Iran announced in August that it has used the latest home-made missile production, Sayyad (Hunter) 2, in its sophisticated S-200 anti-aircraft system.

Speaking to reporters in August, Esmayeeli said that the country had used "Sayyad 2 missiles in its S-200 defense systems", and pointed out that the restructuring of the system was the result of the industrious efforts made by experts at the Iranian defense industries and his base.

In similar remarks in July 2011, Esmayeeli had announced that the country's experts have been able to optimize the Russian-made S-200 anti-aircraft missile system so well that the Iranian version of the system has stunned Russian experts.

In November 2010, Iran successfully test-fired its sophisticated S-200 anti-aircraft missile systems.

Iran's S-200 system is a very long range, medium-to-high altitude surface-to-air missile (SAM) system designed to defend large areas from bomber attack or other strategic aircrafts. Each battalion has 6 single-rail missile launchers and fire control radar. It can be linked to other, longer-range radar systems.

Each missile is launched by 4 solid-fueled strap-on rocket boosters. Maximum range is between 200 and 350 km depending on the model. The missile uses radio illumination mid-course correction to fly towards the target with a terminal semi active radar homing phase.

UN Prolongs Peacekeeper Mandate in Golan Heights

Source : RIA Novosti

UNITED NATIONS, June 27 (RIA Novosti) – The United Nations Security Council on Thursday prolonged the presence of a UN peacekeeping force in the disputed Golan Heights region between Syria and Israel for another six months, the UN reported on its website.

The Security Council also requested Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to ensure that the force, which has recently faced numerous threats, has the required capacity and resources to implement its mandate.

The UN body unanimously adopted a resolution extending the mandate of the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) until December 31, 2013. UNDOF monitors the 1974 Syria-Israel disengagement accord after the two countries’ war the previous year.

The UN-monitored buffer zone in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights was set up to separate Israeli and Syrian forces after the Arab-Israeli war of 1973. Although it is de- jure on Syrian territory, it has been occupied and annexed by Israel since the war. Ownership of the strategically important Golan Heights remains one of the main points of contention between the two nations.

The resolution “underscores” that there should be no military activity of any kind in the area of separation, including both military operations by the Syrian armed forces and military activity of the armed opposition groups.

Russia’s UN ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, told journalists that it was particularly important that the clause on the armed opposition’s activity had been included in the text.

UNDOF’s force strength will be boosted to some 1,250 troops, an increase of about 300.

More than 90,000 people have died since fighting broke out between Syrian government forces and rebel groups in March 2011, according to the latest UN figures.

Russia, along with China, has faced widespread condemnation over its refusal to approve UN sanctions against Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime. Moscow has repeatedly stated that it has no interest in seeing Assad remain at the helm, but is concerned that a power vacuum would lead to more violence.

Russia not withdrawing its base from Syria's Tartus

Source : English pravda.ru

Russian Defense Ministry rebutted reports on the withdrawal of Russian personnel from the sustainment center of the Russian Navy in the Syrian port of Tartus, the press service of the ministry said Thursday.

Defense Ministry officials said that Tartus was still an official base for Russian vessels in the Mediterranean and continued to perform its tasks. The Defense Ministry stated that the affirmation in the reports about the withdrawal of personnel of the sustainment center was extremely incorrect from the point of view of the actual situation.

It was said that there was no one single Russian military employed at the sustainment center in Tartus. The center is serviced by civil personnel only.

Russia pulls out all military staff from Syria: report

Source : Al Akhbar English

Russia has withdrawn all its military personnel from Syria and left its strategic Tartus naval center unstaffed because of the escalating security threat in the war-torn country, the Vedomosti daily said Wednesday.

The respected business daily cited an unnamed source in the Russian defense ministry as saying that no Russian defense ministry military or civilian personnel were now present in Syria, a Soviet-era ally of Moscow.

The source said the decision was taken to limit the dangers posed to Russians amid a raging civil war and to reduce the threat of political damage that could result from Russians being killed by either side.

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov had appeared to confirm the evacuation of military staff in an interview with the London-published Arabic-language daily al-Hayat published on Friday.

"Today, the Russian defense ministry does not have a single person in Syria," he said.

"In Tartus, we never had a base in the first place. It is a technical facility for maintaining ships sailing in the Mediterranean," he added.

The facility in the Mediterranean port of Tartus is Russia's only such asset outside the former Soviet Union.

Created as the result of an agreement between Damascus and Moscow in 1971, the Tartus facility was believed in recent months to have been staffed by just a few dozen Russian defense ministry personnel.

The Vedomosti report said the decision to remove defense ministry personnel did not cover technical experts who are hired by the Syrian government to help train its army to use Russian-issued weapons.

Russia supplies ground-to-surface interceptor missiles to Syria, as well as warplanes and helicopters and other heavy machinery meant for national self-defense.

Moscow defends its military sales to Syria by arguing that it is only fulfilling contracts signed before the current conflict broke out in March 2011.

Syria represents Russia's last strategic ally in the Middle East and the fall of Assad would deal a significant blow to Moscow's geopolitical aspirations.

Iran to deploy 4000 troops in Syria to support Assad forces

Source : Khaama Press (KP)

According to reports Iran has decided to deploy around 4,000 troops to Syria in a bid to support government troops in war against the rebels.

The Independent on Sunday reported that 4,000 Revolutionary Guard troops will be send to fight alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces.

The decision was reportedly taken last week prior to presidential election in Iran.

Pro-Iranian sources quoted by The Independent said Iran has proposed to open up a front against Israel on the Golan Heights as part of efforts to preserve Assad’s regime in Syria.

This comes as United States on Thursday announced it will begin to arm the Syrian opposition in the face of evidence that Assad used chemical weapons against rebels on multiple occasions.

Iran is considered to be one of the main support of President Bashar Assad’s government, and Tehran in the past admitted that Revolutionary Guard forces were active in Syria, helping the regime in its fight against rebels.

In the meantime the opposition Syrian National Coalition upon the victory of Hassan Rowhani in presidential election urged him to drop Tehran’s support for Assad.

The opposition in a statement carried by AFP said, “For more than two years of the Syrian revolution, the Iranian authorities have stood against the aspirations of the Syrian people by continuing to support the criminal Assad regime politically, militarily and economically.”

The statement released by Syrian opposition coalition also called on Rowhani to “reform Iran’s position… before it is too late.”

Lebanon army warns will hit back against any Syria raids

Source : Maan News Agency

BEIRUT (AFP) -- Lebanon's army said it will immediately respond to any further cross- border attacks by the Syrian military after a helicopter gunship attacked the eastern town of Arsal on Wednesday.

"Army units deployed in the (Arsal) area took the necessary defensive measures to respond immediately to any similar violations," a Lebanese army statement said, in a rare warning against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Earlier Wednesday, a helicopter raided Arsal, the majority of whose residents support the anti-Assad revolt in neighboring Syria, for the first time in the nearly 27-month conflict.

At 1:30 p.m., "a Syrian helicopter gunship crossed the border... and launched two rockets from a distance at the (Arsal) town center, injuring one person and causing material damage", the army said.

Damascus dominated Lebanon politically and military for 30 years until 2005, and continues to exert significant influence through its allies in the Mediterranean country.

Lebanon's poorly equipped army coordinates closely with the Syrian military.

Arsal is sensitive because it is located just 12 kilometers from the border with Syria.

Experts say it has been used as a conduit for weapons and rebel fighters to enter into Syria, while it has also served as a refuge for people fleeing the conflict into Lebanon.

Dozens of people wounded in fighting in Qusayr -- most of them rebel fighters -- flocked to Arsal for treatment last week as the Syrian army and Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah overran the former insurgent bastion.

Pro-Syrian, opposition fighting near Iran embassy in Beirut

Source : http://old.mehrnews.com/en

TEHRAN, Jun. 9 (MNA) – Sources say fight between pro-Syrian and opposition groups has broken out near Iran’s embassy in Beirut.

News sources reported that the clashes happened in Ber al- Hassan near Iranian embassy in Beirut between supporters of a Hezbollah presence in Syria and opposition groups. Several individuals have been reportedly injured.

An informed source confirmed the story, but did not provided further details.

Lebanon 24 News website reported that injured people belonged to Al-Inthima al- Lobnaniya a March 14 movement affiliated group, and Syrian opposition and Hezbollah supporters.

Meanwhile SkyNews reported that one was injured during shootings in the clash. Lebanese LBC reported also that one had been injured

Syrian Army liberates Quneitra Crossing – Golan Heights

Source : islamicinvitationturkey.com

Troops of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) have finally established the control over a key crossing in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights yesterday. The units of the Syrian army managed to establish the control over this key crossing in the Golan Heights shortly after it fell into the hands of a group of foreign-backed and Israel- supported terrorists. The units of the Syrian army were able to liberate the so-called Quneitra Crossing in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights just some time after this area was occupied by the Israel-backed terrorists and religious fanatics, who also receive a lot of support by the two totalitarian dictatorships in the Gulf – Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Not to mention the Erdogan regime in Turkey while it seems that Turkey is experiencing its own “Arab Spring” / “Turkish Spring” now. Heavy battles took place between the troops of the Syrian forces and the armed gunmen and jihadists in this area of the occupied Golan Heights but the units of the Syrian army were finally able to liberate the Quneitra Crossing and to remove some of these foreign-backed terrorists from the Syrian soil there. It was previously reported by some Israeli media that foreign-backed gunmen had seized the Quneitra Crossing in the (Israeli-occupied) Golan Heights, although the Israeli media forgot to mention that these armed thugs are also backed by their Israeli regime. Meanwhile, the Austrian government has announced that it is going to withdraw its so-called peacekeepers from the UN monitoring mission and force on the occupied Golan Heights in wake of the continued battles in this area – due to the reason that Israel supports parts of these armed gunmen and militants who are fighting against the secular state of Syria, there is no surprise that the battles are ongoing in the occupied Golan Heights. The withdraw of the Austrian peacekeepers from the Golan Heights means that about 380 persons of the 1,000-strong Observer Force of the United Nations (UNDOF) will leave this area and this means a serious blow for the UN mission, with has always been worthless due to the reason that the Israeli regime still occupies the Syrian soil and the United Nations (UN) never cared about justice. The Israeli regime captured the Syrian Golan Heights during the Six-Day War of 1967, at the same time when they also took the control of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Israel then annexed the Golan Heights in 1981, although the move was never recognized by the international community and was a violation of international law but as mentioned above, the United Nations (UN) never really cared and just made some usual propaganda statements to save and maintain their image for the brainwashed masses. The Israeli regime has already used various means to help the foreign-sponsored militants in Syria, including the provision of medical assistance and transports – as again reported yesterday

Syrian Jets Chase, Bomb Fleeing Militiamen near Lebanon

Source : islamicinvitationturkey.com

Syrian helicopters bombed on Wednesday the open area on the border between Lebanon and Syria near the eastern Lebanese town of Ersal, Lebanese security sources told Al-Manar TV.

The Syrian army warplanes targeted opposition gunmen who have fled from Syrian territories of al-Qusayr border city towards Lebanon, the sources said.

Syrian Arab Army launched at Wednesday dawn a surprise operation in which it totally controlled the border strategic city of al-Qusayr, and called upon its displaced residents to return to their safe homes within days.

In a related context, Lebanese President Michel Sleiman “strongly condemned the Syrian shelling against Ersal,” and called for “respect for Lebanese sovereignty and not to endanger the region and its population.”

Sleiman didn’t touch on the Zionist violations of the international resolution 1701, or the provocations committed by Zionist army on the border with Lebanon on daily basis.

The Syrian Army launched on May 19 a large-scale operation in al-Qusayr border town with Lebanon to clear the area of terrorist gangs and liberate the citizens stuck there.

Syria was hit by a violent unrest since mid-March 2011, where the Syrian government accuses foreign actors of orchestrating the conflict, by supporting the militant opposition groups with arms and money.

Syrian rebels take over Golan Heights crossing

Source : Al Akhbar English

Syrian rebels fighting forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have taken over the Quneitra crossing on the Israel-Syria ceasefire line in the Golan Heights, army radio reported on Thursday, quoting military officials.

The United Nations also confirmed that there were "incidents" along the ceasefire line.

"The IDF (Israel Defence Forces) confirms that Quneitra crossing has fallen to the rebels," the radio said.

Contacted by AFP, a military spokesman refused to comment on the report, which refers to a crossing point in the central part of the strategic plateau.

The Israeli radio station said fierce fighting was still under way in the actual town of the same name, which lies close to the crossing.

Israeli security sources confirmed there were exchanges of fire in the area of the crossing, but said it was not yet possible to say whether it had been taken over.

An Israeli military source told the BBC that Syrian army tanks were deployed to retake Quneitra.

"They are exchanges of fire there," another source told AFP. "The incident is ongoing so it's very hard to say who is in control there."

He said the military had warned farmers not to approach the area and that an unspecified number of Syrian government troops had been taken to a hospital in occupied Palestine for treatment.

"There are apparently also those who are badly injured among the Syrian (army) forces who have been taken to hospital in Safad," he said.

A spokeswoman for Ziv hospital in Safad was unable to confirm or deny the report, referring all inquiries to the military.

In the past three months, at least 16 people wounded in the civil war which has gripped the country have crossed the border and received medical treatment at the hospital.

Israel seized a large section of the strategic plateau from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War and annexed it in 1981, in a move never recognized by the international community.

Israel and Syria are still technically at a state of war.

Pentagon Official: Russian Warships May Be Carrying Weapons to Syria

Source : http://www.almanar.com.lb/

US intelligence agencies have identified three Russian amphibious warships in the eastern Mediterranean that are believed to be carrying weapons shipments that might be used to resupply the Syrian government, CNN quoted a Pentagon official as saying.

CNN reported Thursday that the US has been tracking the ships since they left Russian ports several days ago. US satellites were able to see some indications of containers being loaded onto the ships.

Although it's not confirmed, it's believed the ships may be carrying some components of the controversial Russian S-300 air defense missile system and other weapons for the regime, the report said.

According to the CNN report, the US has been pressing the Russians for weeks to not deliver the S-300 system to Syria. The US believes it would give the Syrian government a much greater ability to target US, Israeli, NATO or other aircraft that may try to strike targets on the ground in the future.

The official told CNN the US did not see any military helicopters being loaded; it is believed the Syrians want to add the helicopters to their inventories.

CNN further revealed that several sensitive military assets are in the region this month as well. In the next two weeks, the US Navy aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower will also be in the region on a scheduled rotation as it returns to its home port on the East Coast.

Injured Syrian Militiaman Dies on Way to Zionist Hospital

Source : islamicinvitationturkey.com 

A wounded Syrian died on his way to a hospital in northern occupied territories of Palestine after crossing the border to seek medical treatment, the hospital said on Wednesday.

Another Syrian militant who was also taken to the hospital at the same time had been operated on and was in stable condition, hospital spokeswoman Yael Shavit told Agence France Presse.

”A wounded Syrian who was travelling in a military ambulance died before reaching Ziv hospital” in the northern Galilee town of Safed, she said.

Zionist army radio later confirmed that both patients were Syrian insurgents fighting against the national army in the border city of al-Qusayr.

Shavit stated that Ziv hospital had treated 16 Syrians injured in fighting in the Golan Heights over the past three months.

On Monday, Zionist Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon confirmed reports that the army had opened a field hospital in the occupied Golan Heights to treat wounded mercenaries crossing the border.

“It’s a humanitarian move, but Israel has no intention of opening a refugee camp,” he claimed.

The Zionist army seized part of the strategic plateau from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War and annexed it in 1981, in a move never recognized by the international community.

The Syrian Army launched on May 19 a large-scale operation in al-Qusayr border town with Lebanon to clear the area of terrorist gangs and liberate the citizens stuck there.

The military campaign has been crowned on Wednesday by seizing full control over the city and most of its countryside and calling on the displaced residents to go back to their homes.

Syria was hit by a violent unrest since mid-March 2011, where the Syrian government accuses foreign actors of orchestrating the conflict, by supporting the militant opposition groups with arms and money.

Syrian MP Says Damascus Free to Strike Israel - Report

Source : RIA Novosti

MOSCOW, June 6 (RIA Novosti) - Syria has the right to strike Israel in case of any possible Israeli attacks in the future, Al Arabiya reported on Thursday citing Ahmad Shalash, a member of the Syrian parliament.

“Next time, if Israel dares to breach the Syrian airspace, next time, there are orders to retaliate with fire and missiles without referring back to the leadership,” Shalash was quoted as saying by Al Arabiya.

Israel is widely believed to have carried out several airstrikes on Syria in early May, though it has not officially confirmed that it did so. Reuters reported, citing unnamed Western intelligence sources that the airstrikes targeted a shipment of Iranian- made Fateh-110 guided missiles believed to be on their way to Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group. According to Syria’s state news agency SANA, the Israeli attack targeted a research facility near the capital Damascus.

“Let it all out, they want an open war, let it be an open war, we don’t have a problem,” Shalash added.

Shalash’s words come after last week’s statement by President Bashar Assad, who said that Syria “will respond in kind” to any future Israeli airstrike on its territory.

Assad said there was "popular pressure" to open a military front against Israel on the Golan Heights but such a move would requi serious political, social and military deliberation.

Yaalon: No Russian S-300 to Syria before 2014

Source : http://www.almanar.com.lb

Israeli Defense Minister said that Russia cannot deliver the air defense system S-300 to Syria before the year of 2014. He also acknowledged for the first time that the Zionist entit has field hospittal in the occupied Golan Heights to treat the foriegn-backed militants fighting the Syrian government.

“We are concerned about the matter, and the delivery has not taken place. In case the deal will be carried out, this will not happen before 2014,” Moshe Yaalon told the parliamentary committee on Foreign and Defense Affairs, in comments reported by Zionist arm radio.

The Zionist minister did not give any explanation for his conclusions.

On May 28, Yaalon hinted at a military action against Syria in case th delivery takes place, saying the Zionist entity "knows how to act in such a case.”

Meamwhile, Yaalon asserted that the Zionist army held a field hospita in the Golan Heights to treat the wounded militants fighting the Syria government. He considered that this is a “humanitarian initiative, denying any Zionist intention to establish a refugee camp for civilian escaping the clashes.

Iraq: Israel to Bear Consequences in Case it Used Our Airspace for Iran Strike

Source :

Iraq warned the Zionist entity on Monday against using its airspace to launch a strike against the Islamic Republic of Iran.

"We have also warned Israel that if they violate Iraqi airspace, they will have to bear the consequences," Hussein al-Shahristani, deputy prime minister responsible for energy affairs.

He said that Iraq had received assurances from Washington that the United States would not use its airspace to attack Iran.

"The (Americans) have assured us that they will never violate Iraqi airspace or Iraqi sovereignty by using our airspace to attack any of our neighbors," Shahristani said in an interview in his office in Baghdad's heavily-fortified Green Zone.

The minister said that the issue had been discussed in Iraq's national security council, and the warning had been passed to Israel "through countries that they have relations with".

Asked how Iraq would react to any such Israeli attempt to target Iran, Shahristani said: "Obviously, Iraq wouldn't be disclosing its reaction, to allow Israel to take that into account."

Shahristani also note dthat a similar policy applied to the use of Iraq's airspace for any military action in neighboring Syria.

12 rockets fall in town of Wadi Khaled

Source : LBCI News

The state-run National News Agency reported on Friday that 12 rockets crashed at break of dawn in the outskirts of the town of Wadi Khaled on the northern Lebanese border with Syria.

While no injuries were reported, the rockets are said to have been launched from the Syrian side in an attempt to sway the ongoing battle into the Lebanese front.

On Tuesday, 4 rockets also crashed in the town of Hermel, destroying one home and injuring three people.

One of the rockets hit a residential neighborhood in the center of the town while the other crashed near the hills facing the town, the state- run National News Agency reported.

The incident comes one day after Lebanese citizen Loulou Awad (17) was killed when a rocket crashed into her home.

In recent months, the Bekaa Valley has become a target for both the Syrian rebels and the Syrian army.

Officially, Lebanon is abiding by the policy of dissociation in regards to the conflict taking place in Syria.

However, the March 14 alliance has backed the uprising, while Hezbollah and its allies support Syrian president Bashar Assad.

Syria repeatedly said rebels and weapons are being smuggled into Syria from Lebanon, while rebels accuse Hezbollah of intervening in the conflict by sending fighters to combat alongside Syrian troops especially in al-Qusayr.

Turkey returns fire after troops shot at from Syria

Source : The Voice of Russia:

Turkish troops fired into Syria after one of its armoured vehicles patrolling the border came under fire from unidentified gunmen, the Turkish military said on Thursday.

Turkey returns fire after troops shot from Syria

The troops returned fire after three to five gunmen shot between 15 and 20 rounds the vehicle patrolling a stretch of the shared border in Turkey's southern Hatay prov on Wednesday afternoon, it said.

There were no Turkish troop casualties.

Voice of Russia, Reuters

Assad: Syria Will Strike Back at Any Future Israeli Attack

Source : RIA Novosti

DUBAI, May 31 (RIA Novosti) – President Bashar Assad has said that Syria “will respond in kind” to any future Israeli airstrike on its territory and expressed confidence in the victory over the foes of the Syrian state.

The Syrian government has been criticized for its muted response to recent Israeli airstrikes on several facilities in Syria in alleged attempts to stop shipments of missiles bound for Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group.

“We have informed the relevant states that we will respond in kind [next time],” Assad said in a televised interview with Lebanese al-Manar TV on Thursday. “We plan for different scenarios, depending on the circumstances and the timing of the strike.”

Assad said there was "popular pressure" to open a military front against Israel on the Golan Heights but such a move would require serious political, social and military deliberation.

Assad also said he had no doubts about his victory against opponents in a battle that he described as a "world war against Syria and the resistance [in reference to Hezbollah fighters]."

"Regarding my confidence about victory, had we not had this confidence, we wouldn't have been able to fight in this battle for two years, facing an international attack," he said.

Assad’s confident tone comes in a wake of a recent “shift in the balance of power” in the Syrian conflict as the government troops have scored a number of victories in the fight against the rebels throughout the country.

Assad reiterated his support of an international conference on Syria, which Russia and the United States attempt to put together in Geneva, but stressed that any outcome of this or any other Syria-related discussions by the international community must be “subject to the approval of the Syrian people through a popular referendum.”

“Nothing can be implemented without the approval of the Syrian people,” he said.

Asked about the controversial issue of the deliveries of Russian S-300 air defense systems to Syria, Assad simply said Russia is committed to honoring the existing defense contracts with Syria.

“All of our agreements with Russia will be implemented, some have been implemented during the past period and, together with the Russians, we will continue to implement these contracts in the future,” the Syrian president said.

Israeli military moves up to Lebanon border

Source : middleeastmonitor.com

The Israeli military has moved resources and personnel up to the border with Lebanon, installing a barbed wire fence near the occupied Shebaa Farms area on Jabal Al-Shaikh (Mount Hermon). According to a Lebanese security source in Beirut, the Israelis have also sent pilotless drones as well as manned aircraft over Southern Lebanon, including the Beqaa Valley.

The source added that several artillery shells were fired from the eastern edge of the occupied Shebaa Farms. No casualties were reported.

Doubts Cast Over Reported S-300 Deliveries to Syria

Source : RIA Novost

MOSCOW, May 30 (RIA Novosti) – Reports that Syria’s president had confirmed receiving a consignment of Russian- manufactured S-300 air defense systems emerged Thursday, but were quickly brought into question.

In comments widely reported across the world, Lebanese newspaper Al Akhbar quoted Syrian President Bashar Assad as saying Damascus had received initial deliveries of the S-300 system.

Assad's remarks were allegedly made during a pre-recorded interview to be aired on Hezbollah-controlled Almanar television channel on Thursday evening at 10:00 p.m. Moscow time.

But a high-level source at Lebanon-based Almanar, who said he had been present throughout the interview, told RIA Novosti by telephone that at no point did Assad explicitly confirm any S-300 deliveries.

When Assad was asked about the delivery of the anti-missile systems, the source – who requested that his name not be printed – said, the Syrian president replied that “everything we have agreed with Russia will be implemented, and a part of it has been implemented already.”

By Thursday afternoon, the Al Akhbar newspaper, which reported Assad's comments as an exclusive, appeared to backtrack on the veracity of its story, which also included a statement attributed to Assad that the rest of the S-300 equipment "will arrive soon."

The Assad quotes were "professionally stolen" through sources at Almanar and any information provided by the television station is more reliable, an Al Akhbar employee told RIA Novosti in a telephone interview, also requesting anonymity.

Documents revealing the existence of an agreement between Russia and Syria to supply the sophisticated S-300 air defense system, which can target ballistic missiles as well as aircraft, were first reported in the Russian press in 2011, but official confirmations have been scant. However, earlier this week Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov mentioned the deal’s existence, according to Russian media, saying a contract for providing Syria with S-300s had been signed “several years ago.”

Reached by telephone Thursday, Russian state-owned arms exporter Rosoboronexport declined to comment on whether elements of the S-300 system had been successfully delivered to Syria.

The shipment of the S-300s is a source of contention between Moscow and Washington. Last week US Secretary of State John Kerry said the presence of the anti-missile systems in Syria would be “destabilizing” for the region.

Russian officials publicly refuse to confirm or deny the S-300 deliveries, but argue that they would be legal under international law and would help to contain the Syrian conflict.

Steps such as the delivery of S-300s are restraining some "hot heads" from turning the Syrian conflict into an international conflict with the participation of outside forces, Ryabkov said Tuesday.

S-300 missile systems, which are capable of simultaneously tracking up to 100 targets while engaging 12 at a range of up to 200 kilometers and a height of up to 27 kilometers, could dramatically raise the risks of a potential airstrike against Syrian targets.

Israeli jets have reportedly launched attacks on Syria, including the capital Damascus, several times this year. Tel Aviv said recent strikes in May were targeted at weapons being transferred to Hezbollah in Lebanon, according to Western news agencies.

Al-Moallem: Syria Won’t Let any Israeli Aggression Unanswered

Source : http://www.almanar.com.lb

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said on Wednesday that Syria will immediately respond to any possible future attacks by the Zionist regime.

In an interview with Lebanese TV station al-Mayadeen, Al Moallem said that any response from Damascus will b given without a warning. “Syria will not let any Israe aggression go unanswered without retaliation. Th retaliation will be the same size as the aggression, and the same type of weapons will be used,” he said.

Moallem added that Syria would take part in th upcoming talks in Geneva without any precondition adding that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would remain president until the next presidential election scheduled to be held in 2014. "From now until the nex elections, President Bashar al-Assad is the president o the Syrian Arab Republic," he said.

The Syrian foreign minister noted that any deal reached in the Geneva talks, due to be held possibly next month would be put to a referendum inside Syria. "If it wins th support of the Syrian people, we will go ahead with it, Moallem said.

Russia May Revise Ban on Syrian Arms Exports - Minister

Source : RIA Novosti

HELSINKI, May 29 (RIA Novosti) – Russia is disappointed with the EU move to end the ban on arms sales to the Syrian opposition and may reconsider its own commitments to restrictions on weapons deliveries to the war- torn country, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Wednesday.

“Every decision has two sides. If one side lifts restrictions, the other may consider itself free from observing earlier commitments,” Shoigu said at a joint news conference in Helsinki with his Finnish counterpart, Carl Haglund.

Russia has been harshly criticized by the West for reported deliveries of six S-300 air defense systems to Syria under a 2010 contract rumored to be worth $900 million.

Moscow, however, has insisted that such deliveries would be legal under international law and has denied supplying Syria with offensive weapons that can be used to kill civilians.

Before the start of the rebellion against Bashar Assad’s regime in March 2011, Syria, the largest importer of Russian arms in the Middle East, had shown interest in purchasing various armored vehicles, Yak- 130 combat trainer aircraft and Iskander-E tactical ballistic missiles.

Moscow decided at the time to hold off delivering offensive weapons to the Syrian regime on worries that it could upset the balance of power in the Middle East.

Israeli warning over missiles

Source : Shanghai Daily

Israel's defense minister signaled that his military is prepared to strike shipments of Russian weapons to Syria, in a rare implied threat to Moscow.

Moshe Yaalon issued his warning shortly after a Russian official said his government reserved the right to provide Syria with air defense missiles.

"As far as we are concerned, that is a threat," Yaalon told reporters. "At this stage I can't say there is an escalation. The shipments have not been sent on their way yet," he said.

But "if God forbid they do reach Syria, we will know what to do."

Russia says committed to Syria missiles deal

Source : Al Akhbar English

Russia will not scrap plans to deliver an air defense system to Syria despite Western opposition because it would help deter "hotheads" intent on intervention in the two-year-old conflict, the deputy foreign minister said on Tuesday.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov also accused the European Union of "throwing fuel on the fire" by letting its own arms embargo on Syria expire.

"This directly harms the prospects of convening an international conference," said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, referring to the EU decision Monday to lift an embargo against arming Syrian rebels but not the Damascus government.

But in some of the most explicit comments about Moscow's supplies of S-300 missiles to date, Ryabkov said the controversial contract to send the anti-aircraft missiles to Syria acted as a "stabilizing factor" in the Middle East.

"We consider these supplies a stabilizing factor," he said, adding that it could act as a deterrence against foreign intervention.

Russian officials have not disclosed whether S-300s have actually been sent to Syria and Ryabkov would not specify.

"I can't confirm or deny that these deliveries have taken place, I can only say that we will not disavow them," Ryabkov said. "We see that this issue worries many of our partners but we have no basis to review our position in this sphere."

Ryabkov's comments sparked a quick reaction from Israel, which said it "will know what to do" if the missile deliveries were made – an apparent allusion to another air-strike on Syria.

Ryabkov added that the missile supplies were related to a contract signed several years ago with the Syrian regime.

The minister also stressed that the weapons were purely defensive, insisting that they were designed to protect the government against outside forces, rather than serving to crush the domestic opposition.

Ryabkov reiterated that Russia's arms deliveries to Syria were legitimate because they were conducted under pre-war agreements that were reached with an internationally recognized government.

Ryabkov also argued that the fractured opposition's failure up to this stage to appoint a single representative at the proposed conference was the biggest existing stumbling block to peace.

"The fragmented nature of the groups fighting the government and the inability of our partners including the United States and the EU to ensure a sufficient level of representation by the opposition at the conference are the main stumbling block today."

The European Union agreed late Monday to lift its embargo on arming the opposition after much debate and a strong push for the measure by France and Britain.

A French official in Paris stressed that this was a "theoretical" lifting of the embargo that would not go into effect until August 1 at the earliest because the EU did not want to hurt the peace talks pushed by Moscow and Washington.

Israel 'will know what to do' over Russia missiles

Source : AFP

JERUSALEM — Israel "will know what to do" if Russia delivers anti-aircraft missiles to Syria, its defence minister said Tuesday, in an apparent allusion to another air strike on the war-torn neighbouring country.

"The deliveries have not taken place, and I hope they do not. But if, by misfortune, they arrive in Syria, we will know what to do," Moshe Yaalon said.

His comments came after Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said providing the missiles to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad would be a "stabilising factor" aimed at deterring any foreign intervention in Syria.

Speaking in Moscow, Ryabkov said "we consider these supplies a stabilising factor and believe such steps will deter some hotheads from considering scenarios that would turn the conflict international with the involvement of outside forces."

Earlier this month, Israel launched air raids inside Syria targeting what sources said were arms destined for its arch foe, Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, whose fighters have entered the conflict alongside the Syrian army.

The strikes ramped up regional tension, with Syria threatening to hit back.

Israel and Russia's opposing standpoints over Syria surfaced shortly afterwards, with the Jewish state criticising Russian arms deals with Assad, and Moscow appearing to warn against further Israeli strikes.

Syrian Envoy: Russia's S-300 Missiles Shipments to Damascus Never Halted

Source : Fars News Agency

TEHRAN (FNA)- The military-technical cooperation contracts between Russia and Syria have not been changed, Syrian Ambassador to Russia Riyad Haddad said.

All agreements signed between Syria and Russia "are being implemented without any changes", the Syrian envoy told Interfax.

Haddad was commenting on reports that Russia allegedly halted the shipment of S-300 missile systems to Syria at Israel's request.

3 LAF soldiers beaten, shot in the head near the town of Arsal

Source : LBCI News

Three Lebanese Armed Forces' soldiers were killed on Tuesday after unknown assailants opened fire at them at 3 am at dawn in the region of Wadi Hmeid on the outskirts of Arsal.

The LAF took airtight measures in the region in order to identify the assailants who escaped towards an unknown direction.

In this regard, a security source told LBCI that the soldiers' checkpoint in Arsal was stormed with a Hummer, their arms were seized, they were then beaten and shot in their heads, adding that the rest of LAF soldiers in the military checkpoint opened fire at the five assailants, but they managed to escape.

A military source also told LBCI that most of the assailants who opened fire at LAF soldiers are Syrian nationals.

This as schools and shops in the town of Arsal closed their doors in protest of the heinous attack that targeted the soldiers.

It is not the first time the LAF soldiers fall victim to the Arsal violence. LAF troops were ambushed in Arsal on Friday February 1st, 2013, while trying to detain fugitive, Khaled Hmeid, suspected of involvement in the 2011 kidnapping of seven Estonian tourists who were abducted in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley and held for nearly four months before being released in July that year.

Khaled Hmeid was injured in the raid and subsequently succumbed to his wounds. Shortly after his capture around 80 gunmen adamant on avenging Hmeid's capture followed the LAF troops who reportedly were stuck on the road leading out of the town due to the accumulation of snow. The gunmen attacked the troops leaving Major Pierre Bachaalany and Adjutant Ibrahim Zahraman for dead. The two were then taken alongside the remaining injured troops to the towns municipality and paraded in a show of celebration.

Israel disclaims a report about Moscow abolition to “S-300” contract to Syria

Source : شبكة عاجل الإخبارية

Israeli sources have denied a report published by the British newspaper “Sunday Time” that Russia will not be committed to hand over the “S-300” missiles to Syria.

The contract has not been eliminated. In fact, it is a myth because there was not any agreement or harmony between Putin and Netanyahu, Israeli sources state according to the Lebanese newspaper al-Safer.

The commander of the Air Forces in Israeli Army Amir Eshel declared the last week that “these missiles are in their way to Syria”, as The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. Martin Dempsey pointed to the transaction, considering it «a sophisticated system may upset the balance and increase the risk. And he said, America can deal with the Syrian arsenal of weapons, but it is not possible to prevent shipping arms to it».

Rocket Fired from Southern Lebanon Hits North of Occupied Palestine

Source : http://www.almanar.com.lb

Media sources confirmed that a missile was launched from the Lebanese town of Marjayoun towards the occupied northern territories of Palestine.

The sources said sounds of sirens in the Zionist settlements north of the occupied territories were heard after the fall of the rocket.

The Zionist military said it was investigating reports from residents of the northern Israeli town of Metula that they had heard the explosion.

Israeli forces and UN troops investigated the area near the Lebanese border early on Monday but did not detect any activity or damage. “An explosion was heard. Soldiers are searching the area. The cause is still being investigated,” an Israeli military spokeswoman said.

A Lebanese high-ranking military official denied the attack. “No rocket was fired on Israel,” the official told Voice of Lebanon radio although he confirmed that an explosion had taken place.

Al-Manar website sources said an Israeli patrol moved near the barbed-wire fence near Al-Metula region facing the town of Kfar Kila.

“Unknown side had fired a 107Katyusha rocket from the vicinity of the town of Burj Almolouk - Deir Mimas, and fell in the southern part of Al-Metula border settlement which led to the launch of sirens in Metula and Kiryat Shmona. Also alerting movements were observed in the region opposite to Khiam plain,” the sources indicated.

Source: Al-Manar Website

Israel drills unconventional warfare

Source : Xinhua

JERUSALEM, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Amid mounting tensions with Syria, Israel's military and rescue forces on Sunday launched a nationwide drill aimed at testing their readiness to cope with an unconventional weapons attack on the home front.

The four-day exercise, named "Steadfast Home Front 1," simulates hundreds of missiles -- some armed with chemical warheads and fired from neighboring foes Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and possibly Iran -- striking the greater Tel Aviv area and major cities across the country.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Home Front Command, the Home Front Defense Ministry and the Defense Ministry's National Emergency Authority are overseeing the event, the seventh held since the 2006 Lebanon War, when an estimated 4,000 rockets were lobbed at northern Israel.

Government offices and local authorities, in conjunction with first-responders -- including police, firefighters and paramedics - - are leading the exercise, which also aims to test the civilian population's response to mainly unconventional missile strikes.

As part of the simulation, two air-raid sirens will sound across the country on Monday, alerting civilians to seek refuge in protected areas wherever possible.

The IDF was careful to emphasize that this week's drill, which commenced Sunday at southern farming communities bordering Egypt, is not related to heightened tensions with Syria.

"This exercise is mostly intended to reach out to the civilian population, to make sure that they are aware of the threats around us, to know what they need to do in case of emergencies," Lt. Col. Peter Lerner, a military spokesman, told reporters in a conference call on Saturday night.

"The scenarios being drilled were planned a year in advance, well before the current tensions," he added.

Seeking to downplay fears of a nearing chemical attack, Home Front Defense Minister Gilad Erdan said over the weekend that Israel is not headed toward a war with Syria, and that the main threat remains a conventional missile attack.

"The scenario in which Syria uses chemical weapons against Israel is more likely than in the past, but is defined in low probability," Erdan told Channel 2 TV on Saturday. "Our enemies know that the use of unconventional weaponry will entail a very harsh and destructive response.

Last week, Erdan told a news conference that missile strikes on Israel's major cities are a matter of time. "The question is no longer if. The question now is when will they fire on population centers? It can happen tonight, or next week."

Jordan to deploy Patriot missiles along border with Syria

Source : Al Akhbar English

Jordan, which shares borders with war-torn Syria, said on Sunday it is in talks with "friendly countries" to deploy Patriot missiles on its territory after a similar move by Turkey.

"Jordan wishes to deploy Patriot missile batteries in order to boost its defense capabilities and help protect the country," Information Minister Mohammed Momani told a news conference.

"We are currently at the stage of talks with friendly states," said Momani, who is also government spokesman, declining to elaborate.

A NATO source told AFP last week that four batteries of Patriot missiles have arrived in Turkey as part of a mission by the alliance to protect the Turkish border from any spillover of the conflict in neighboring Syria.

NATO approved their deployment in December, claiming the use of ballistic missiles by the Syrian government posed a threat to Turkey.

Jordan, home to more than 500,000 Syrian refugees, has similar concerns as Turkey.

"We wish and we demand Patriot missiles. We always talk about this because we want to protect ourselves," Jordan's Prime Minister Abdullah Nsur told Qatar's al-Sharq newspaper last week.

Other countries in possession of Patriot missiles in the region include Egypt, Israel, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.

In April, US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel revealed that some 150 US military specialists have been deployed in Jordan since last year and that he had ordered a US Army headquarters team to bolster the mission, bringing the total American presence to more than 200 troops.

Iraqi Forces Launch Operation against Militants near Syria

Source : http://www.almanar.com.lb

The Iraqi forces started a military operation on Saturday to improve the security of the country’s western desert and the border provinces of Anbar and Nineveh as concerns were voiced about using these areas as strongholds and passages for the militants heading to fight in Syria. Around 20,000 soldiers were sent the troops to the 600-kilometer border with Syria to start attacking the hideouts of the militants who belong to terrorist groups including al-Qaeda. Also the Iraqi troops are looking to secure a key road that lead to Syria. “The operation is large and backed up by the air force,” said Staff General Ali Ghaidan Majeed. Dozens of the terrorist militants have been killed and others have been arrested since the beginning of the military operation that has also left several militants’ households damaged.

Five wounded in southern Beirut rocket attack

Source : Xinhua

BEIRUT, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Two rockets hit the Hezbollah- controlled southern part of Lebanon's capital on Sunday, wounding five people, the state-run National news agency reported.

One Grad rocket landed in a car showroom in the Mar Mikhael district and another struck an apartment building in Chiyah district, the report said.

The attack came after Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah overtly defended his group's backing to the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Three Israeli Military Aircraft Violate Lebanese Airspace

Source : Fars News Agency

TEHRAN (FNA)- Three Israeli military aircraft penetrated Lebanese airspace and flew over several areas of the country in blatant violation of a UN Security Council resolution.

Two Israeli fighter jets crossed into Lebanon's airspace over the Southern border village of Kfar Kila, located 96 kilometers (59 miles) South of Beirut, at 9:45 am local time (0645 GMT) on Friday, according to a statement issued by the Lebanese military, press tv reported.

The warplanes flew over several areas in Lebanon before leaving the country's airspace at 12:15 pm local time (0915 GMT) while flying over the town of Alma al-Shaab.

On Thursday, an Israeli unmanned aerial vehicle crossed into Lebanon's airspace over the town of Alma al-Shaab at 9:10 pm local time (1810 GMT). The plane carried out surveillance flights over several areas in Southern Lebanon, including the towns of Riyaq and Baalbek, and left at 2:30 am local time on Friday (2330 GMT on Thursday).

On May 19, Lebanese President Michel Sleiman denounced the Israeli regime's repeated incursions into Lebanon's airspace.

He said the Israeli overflights were "an attempt to raise tensions in Southern Lebanon against the international will, which is represented by the UN peacekeeping forces in the area".

Israel violates Lebanon's airspace on an almost daily basis, claiming the flights serve surveillance purposes.

Lebanon's government, the Hezbollah resistance movement, and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the overflights, saying they are in clear violation of UN Resolution 1701 and the country's sovereignty.

UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war of aggression Israel launched against Lebanon in 2006, calls on Israel to respect Lebanon's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

In 2009, Lebanon filed a complaint with the United Nations, presenting over 7,000 documents pertaining to Israeli violations of Lebanese territory

Most American voters oppose US military intervention in Syria: Poll

Source : islamicinvitationturkey.com

A new opinion poll shows that an overwhelming majority of Americans are opposed to a potential military intervention by the United States in Syria.

According to a Fox News poll conducted from May 18 to May 20, about 68 percent of the people surveyed opposed the US military intervention and said Washington should not get more involved in the internal affairs of Syria. The respondents said Washington could be supporting anti- American extremist groups in the long run by helping the foreign- backed militants in Syria. About 70 percent of those who were against intervention in Syria were Republicans, 69 percent Democrats, and 65 percent independents. The poll also showed that only 23 percent of people in the US support military intervention in Syria. On May 21, the US Foreign Relations Committee voted 15-3 for a bill that would provide lethal assistance and military training to the militants in Syria. The bill is, however, not binding. Many people, including large numbers of Syrian soldiers, have been killed in the turmoil. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on May 18 that militants from 29 different countries were fighting against the government in different parts of the country."

5 zionist israeli soldiers killed in the vehicle destroyed by Syrian Army

Source : islamicinvitationturkey.com

Unofficial Syrian sources in al-Qunaitera told “al-Rae’e”, Kuwaiti newspaper, that not only an Israeli vehicle has been completely destroyed, but also other 5 Israeli soldiers were killed in the operation in which Syrian Army targeted an Israeli vehicle as it was trying to trespass the cease-fire line at the village of Bir Ajam in al-Golan.

The newspaper reported civil witnesses that: “the Israeli vehicle has been completely destroyed with its 5-member crew as it was trying to trespass cease-fire line in the village of Bir Ajam that witnesses clashes between Syrian Army and militant groups for more than 8 months.”

Sources also said that the Israeli side has been put on alert since the last raid by Israel at the outskirts of Damascus where a lot of Israeli tanks have been deployed in more than one point opposite to the liberated city of al-Qunaitera and also opposite to the villages of Bir Ajam and Breikah.

Same sources made clear that although a skirmish took place yesterday, but still “life is normal and also apple-charging continues from the occupied villages in al-Golan Hill at the crossing point of the liberated city of Qunaitera by UNDOF forces and International Committee of the Red Cross.

Syrian missiles in Israeli cities "a matter of time": Israeli minister

Source : Xinhua

JERUSALEM, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Syrian missile strikes on major urban centers in Israel are "just a matter of time," Israel's Home Front Defense Minister Gilad Erdan said Tuesday ahead of a nationa civil defense drill scheduled for next week.

"It is no longer a question of whether missiles will be fired toward dense population centers, but when. My answer is that it doesn't really matter. It can happen tonight or next week. The flare-ups along our borders do not solely depend on the Israeli army or its wishes," Erdan told reporters hours after Israeli and Syrian forces exchanged fire in the central Israeli occupied Golan Heights overnight Monday.

In an interview later in the day with Army Radio, Erdan said the Iron Dome missile defense system would not be able to intercept all the projectiles that would be fired toward Israel in the event of a war with Syria and Lebanon's Hezbollah.

"It's obvious that central Israel will also be hit in the next conflict," Erdan said.

Last week, local media outlets widely cited a recent report drafted by the Home Front Defense Ministry, which determines that Israel is ill-prepared to shield its civilian population from an unconventional terror attack.

"As of today, the preparedness of government offices and authorities against the threat of unconventional weapons is medium- low ... while the threat of an unconventional terror attack unfolding has also risen," said the report.

"... The main concern focuses on chemical and biological weapons reservoirs in Syria. Loss of control of the regime would bring these materials to a variety of terrorist groups already active in the region," the report said. It underscored that Israel is critically short on gas masks after all of the current stockpile is distributed.

In response to the report, Erdan said the administration of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad "understands well" the difference between conventional weapons and unconventional weapons.

"Syria won't dare turn its chemical weapons against Israel ... we have very strong response capabilities," he said.

Israel and the West have been accusing the Syrian troops of possessing chemical weapons and using them against civilians, while Damascus denied the claims and blamed the rebels for causing deaths by such weapons.

Israel, Syria show teeth: Third cross-border shootout in week

Source : Tehran Times

Israeli troops opened “retaliating” fire at targets across the Syrian border with Syria later claiming it destroyed an Israeli military vehicle stationed in Golan Heights. This is a third consecutive cross-border shooting in a week, Israeli media say.

The Israeli military said their troops had “returned precise fire” after a Syrian soldier allegedly caused damage to a military vehicle stationed in Golan Heights, near the border.

The shots “most likely were stray bullets, we don't know if it was intentional,” an Israeli spokesperson told AFP. There were no injuries following the initial shots.

Soon after that the Syrian military declared in a televised statement that in response they had successfully targeted a further Israeli vehicle:

“Our armed forces have destroyed an Israeli vehicle with everything that it had in it... The vehicle had crossed the ceasefire line and was moving towards the village of Bir Ajam, situated in the liberated Syrian zone [of the Golan].”

Tel-Aviv denied the claims. Israel’s Army Radio however said the Tuesday incident was the third consecutive cross-border shooting this week and the military considers the incident to be concerning. Cross-border gunfire incidents have become a more frequent occurrence in recent months amid the ongoing Syrian civil war.

Fire from the conflict within Syria has intermittently struck Golan Heights, with Israel generally accepting these incidents as accidental. However, Israel has occasionally retaliated for the bullets and infrequent mortar shells entering the border territory, which they captured from Syria in 1967.

Airstrikes – attributed to Israel, but not confirmed – struck military posts in Syria at the beginning of May, with the blasts reportedly killing scores of soldiers.

Israel has never made an official comment on the strikes, but only stated it would do everything against the prospect of its foes in Lebanon obtaining weapons smuggled through Syria.

Russian President Vladimir Putin met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Sochi exactly a week ago, with both agreeing that the two -year Syrian armed conflict, if continued, could lead to “disastrous consequences” for the region.

(Source: RT)

Israel army warns Syria of Golan unrest 'consequences'

Source : The Voice of Russia:

The head of Israel's armed forces warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of "consequences" on Tuesday if fire from Syrian territory against Israeli troops in the occupied Golan continues.

"If he disturbs the Golan Heights, he will have to bear the consequences," Lieutenant General Benny Gantz said in remarks broadcast on privately-owned Channel 10 TV.

Israeli military vehicle destroyed by Syrian army in Golan Heights

Source :  Ahlul Bayt News Agency

Syria says its army has destroyed an Israeli military vehicle in the occupied Golan Heights, adding that the vehicle had crossed the Golan ceasefire line.

General Command of the Army and the Armed Forces said that our armed forces destroyed an Israeli vehicle entered from the occupied territories and exceeded the cease-fire line towards the village of Bir Ajam.

" The village is located in the liberated area of Syrian territories where there ar armed terrorist groups, " the General Command said in a statement issued Tuesday.

" Following that, the Israeli enemy fired two rockets from the occupied site of al-Faras toward one of our sites in al-Zubaydiah site; no casualties reported, " statement said.

It added that the aggression aims at raising the terrorist groups' collapsed mo due to the painful blows they received at the hands of our armed forces in mo than one a place, especially in al-Qsier area.

The General Command of the Army and the Armed Forces said that the blatan aggression confirms again the involvement of the Zionist entity in the ongoing events in Syria and the direct coordination with the armed terrorist gangs.

The statement stressed that any breach or an attempt to violate the state sovereignty will be responded.

Zionist Troops in Golan Return Fire from Syria

Source : http://www.almanar.com.lb

Israeli occupation soldiers patrolling the occupied Golan Heights along the border with Syria fired back after coming under fire overnight, an Israeli military statement said Tuesday.

“Overnight, shots were fired at an IDF patrol on the border in the central Golan Heights, damaging a military vehicle,” said a statement on the army’s website. No one had been wounded, it added.

“In response, IDF forces returned precise fire at the source of the gunfire. They reported a direct hit,” the statement added. “The IDF views the recent incidents in the north with concern and has lodged a complaint with UNDOF,” the UN Disengagement Force responsible for patrolling that area.

Early on Monday, the Zionist entity claimed that small-arms fire from Syria hit the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights overnight, causing no harm or damage. They also filed a complaint with the UN force on that occasion.

Lebanon denies receiving warning message from Israel

Source : Xinhua

BEIRUT, May 20 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese President Michel Suleiman on Monday denied receiving any warning message from Israel that it would destroy Lebanon if Hezbollah attacked the Jewish state.

The presidential media office said in a statement that the president hasn't received such a warning "although Israeli threats and violations of Lebanese airspace never stop."

The denial came after an Israeli website reported that Tel Aviv has sent a warning to Lebanon through the U.S. administration that it would "take Lebanon 50 years backwards" if Hezbollah attacked Israel.

The report said the message was delivered to Lebanese president.

Earlier this month, Suleiman urged the international community to pressure Israel to stop violating Lebanese airspace, saying its activities were in contravention of UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

In July 2006, Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers, which led to a 33-day war that killed more than 1,200 Lebanese civilians as well as 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers.

Two Warships Join Russia’s Mediterranean Task Force

Source : RIA Novosti

MOSCOW, May 21 (RIA Novosti) - Two warships of Russia’s Black Sea fleet joined the country’s Mediterranean task force on Monday, a spokesman for the Russian Black Sea Fleet, Capt. First Rank Vyacheslav Trukhachyov, has said.

The Defense Ministry said in April Russia has begun setting up a naval task force in the Mediterranean, sending several warships from the Pacific Fleet to the region. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said in March a permanent naval task force in the Mediterranean was needed to defend Russia’s interests in the region.

"During a planned rotation, large landing ships Nikolai Filchenkov and Azov from Russia’s Black Sea Fleet have started performing their tasks in the Mediterranean,” Trukhachyov said.

The task force currently includes vessels from the Pacific, Northern, Baltic and Black Sea fleets: the Admiral Panteleyev and Severomorsk destroyers, the Yaroslav Mudry frigate, the Peresvet and Admiral Nevelskoi amphibious warfare ships, the Fotiy Krylov, Altai and SB-921 salvage/rescue tugs, the PM- 138 repair ship, the Pechenga, Lena and Dubna tankers.

Admiral Vladimir Komoyedov, head of the parliamentary defense committee, previously told RIA Novosti that the Mediterranean task force should be comprised of 10 warships and support vessels as part of several tactical groups tasked with attack, antisubmarine warfare and minesweeping.

The Soviet Union maintained its 5th Mediterranean Squadron from 1967 until 1992. It was formed to counter the US Navy's 6th Fleet during the Cold War, and consisted of 30-50 warships and auxiliary vessels.

Syria Readied Its Most Advanced Missiles with Orders to Hit Israel: Report

Source : http://www.almanar.com.lb

Syria has put its most advanced missiles on standby with orders to hi Tel Aviv if the Zionist entity launches another raid on its territory according to the Sunday Times.

Reconnaissance satellites have been monitoring preparations by the Syrian army to deploy surface-to- surface Tishreen missiles.

An Israeli official told The New York Times that the entity, which has launched three recent attacks on Syria, was considering further strike and warned President Bashar al-Assad that his government would fac “crippling consequences” if he hit back at ‘Israel’.

Syria gunfire hits Israel-occupied Golan - army

Source : The Voice of Russia

Shots fired from Syria hit the central Israeli-occupied Golan Heights overnight, a military spokeswoman said Monday morning, causing no harm or damage.

According to the spokeswoman, the shots were from small arms, and "most likely were stray bullets, we don't know if it was intentional."

Palestinian group in Damascus says forming combat units to fight for Golan Heights

A militant Palestinian group in Damascus said it is forming combat units to try to recapture Israeli-occupied territory, in particular the Golan Heights, after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Hezbollah that they would support such operations.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC) said it was preparing for new operations after nearly 40 years of quiet on the Israel-Syria border.

The group, designated terrorists by the United States and others in the West, was most active in the 1970s and 80s but retains influence with Palestinians in Syria and Lebanon.

"The leadership of the PFLP-GC announces that it will form brigades to work on liberating all violated (Israeli-occupied) territories, first and foremost the occupied Golan," it said in a statement late on Friday.

"The Popular Front's leaders have opened the door to all Syrian citizens to volunteer in the formation of the resistance."

Syria to 'respond immediately' to any new Israeli strike

Syria will "respond immediately" to any new Israeli attack against its territory, its deputy foreign minister told AFP on Thursday, after two reported Israeli strikes last week.

"The instruction has been made to respond immediately to any new Israeli attack without (additional) instruction from any higher leadership, and our retaliation will be strong and will be painful against Israel," Faisal Muqdad said.

He spoke in an interview with AFP in the Syrian capital. Senior Israeli sources said the strikes targeted weapons bound for the powerful Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, a close ally of Damascus. Muqdad denied that.

"They absolutely did not achieve their objective and they lied when they said they are targeting Hezbollah," he said.There is "no way Syria will allow this to happen again," he added.

Israel reportedly targeted military sites near the capital Damascus early on Friday morning and again early on Sunday morning, with at least 42 soldiers reported dead in the second strike.

The Jewish state has repeatedly warned it will intervene to prevent the transfer of advanced weaponry to Hezbollah, with which it fought a devastating 2006 war.

The strikes last week were the third time Israel is thought to have hit sites inside Syria since the beginning of an uprising against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad in March 2011. That first was in January of this year.

The uprising, which began with peaceful protests, has devolved into a bloody conflict that has killed more than 70,000 people, according to the UN, and displaced millions of Syrians.

Israel may attack Syria over Russia arms deal with Damascus

Source : Strategic-Culture.org

Western analysts believe that Israel may be forced to attack other weapon shipments in Syria as Russia says that it will remain committed to previous weapons deal with Damascus.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday that Moscow would remain committed to previously signed arms deal "regarding agreements pertaining to aerial defense weapons."

The Russian Foreign Minister added, however, that Russia would not sign any new deal with Syria.

This is while The New York Times reported earlier that Moscow has sent upgraded anti-ship cruise guided missiles, Yakhonts, to Syria which could be used to fight any seaborne attack by the US and its allies.

According to The Guardian, experts believe these systems would be a powerful defense against any effort to enforce a naval embargo on Syria or launch aerial attack against the country.

Meanwhile, CIA chief John Brennan made a visit on Friday to Israel to meet Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and other senior officials following Tel Aviv’s recent attacks against Syria.

On May 5, Syria said the Israeli regime had carried out an airstrike targeting a research center in a suburb of Damascus, following heavy losses of al- Qaeda-affiliated groups at the hands of the Syrian army. According to Syrian media reports, Israeli rockets struck the Jamraya Research Center.

The Jamraya facility was also targeted in an Israeli airstrike in January.

The May 5 attack came shortly after Tel Aviv confirmed that its warplanes had hit another target in Syria on May 3.

Islamic Jihad Urges Muslim Confrontation with Israeli Aggressions

Source : Fars News Agency

TEHRAN (FNA)- Representative of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement to Tehran Nasser Abusharif strongly condemned the recent Israeli air raid on Syria, and called on all Islamic states to confront the Zionist regime's aggressive moves to prevent similar events in future.

Speaking to FNA on Sunday, Abusharif said the recent Israeli airstrike on Syria was "a blatant violation of an independent state."

"We in the Islamic Jihad Movement condemn the attack and, of course, this opposition should not be limited to criticism and condemnation in words. Rather, we want confrontation with this occupying enemy because we blame a major part of the regional problems on this occupying regime and the western plots which are hatched and exercised in support of this regime."

"Arab and Islamic nations could counter this Zionist enemy through unity and solidarity and prevent it from repeating its aggressions against Muslim territories," the Palestinian figure stated.

"It is the time for the Islamic Ummah (community) to confront this cancerous tumor and wipe it out from the region."

Earlier this month, Syria said the Israeli regime had carried out an airstrike targeting a research center in a suburb of Damascus after heavy losses were inflicted on al-Qaeda-affiliated groups by the Syrian army. According to Syrian media reports, Israeli rockets struck the Jamraya research center.

The Israeli aggression was Tel Aviv's second strike on Syria in three days and the third in the last five months.

The Jamraya facility was also targeted in an Israeli airstrike in January.

Russia rebuffs criticism over Syria arms shipments

Source : Al Akhbar English

Russia's foreign minister on Friday brushed off Western criticism of Moscow for supplying of weapons to Syria’s government.

"I do not understand why the media is trying to create a sensation out of this," said Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. "We have not hidden that we supply weapons to Syria under signed contracts, without violating any international agreements, or our own legislation."

Lavrov said during a joint press appearance in Sochi with visiting UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon that Russia only supplied defense weapons that could not alter the outcome of the 26-month conflict between the army and the opposition.

"We are first and foremost supplying defense weapons related to air defense," Lavrov said in televised comments.

"This does not in any way alter the balance of forces in this region or give any advantage in the fight against the opposition," he stressed.

The comments come as the United States on Thursday blacklisted four Syrian government ministers, an airline and a television station it said helped the government in its two-year crackdown on opposition forces.

The same day, the US State Department labeled as a terrorist Mohammad al-Golani, for being the leader of the al-Nusra Front. The group is one of the most effective forces fighting to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but also pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri last month.

The US Treasury Department said the government-owned airline, Syrian Arab Airlines, helped Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards ship illegal cargo – including rockets, anti-aircraft guns and ammunition – to aid the Syrian government.

The United States also accused the privately held Al-Dunya Television of assisting government propaganda by airing forced confessions. Dunya also helped the government disseminate fake weapons busts and arrest people it had interviewed, according to Treasury.

Treasury also blacklisted, or designated, four Syrian officials: the ministers of defense, health, industry, and justice, as part of its broader steps to stymie the government's activities.

The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) meanwhile on Friday said more than 1.5 million people have fled Syria as conditions there deteriorate rapidly.

"The fact that more than 1.5 million have registered or have appointments with UNHCR sadly means the actual number is much higher," UNHCR said in a statement, without giving an estimate for the total.

"Refugees tell us the increased fighting and changing of control of towns and villages, in particular in conflict areas, results in more and more civilians deciding to leave," it said.

Most of the refugees have fled to neighboring Lebanon and Jordan where UNHCR said it had counted 470,457 and 473,587 respectively this week.

Syria's population is 23 million.y

S-300 supplies to Syria not linked to Israel's airstrikes - Lavrov

Source : Strategic-Culture.org

The decision to ship S-300 missile complexes to Syria is not linked to Israel's airstrikes on Syrian territory and was made long before the attacks, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

"Initially missile defense systems are delivered to protect the county that buys them from airstrikes. But these contracts were signed long before airstrikes on Syria were launched last year and now," Lavrov said in an interview with Lebanon's al-Mayadeen TV channel.

Moscow is fulfilling previous agreements on missile defense means and have not signed any new contract with Damascus, he said.

"Those who do not plan aggressive actions against a sovereign state have nothing to worry about, because air defense means - and it comes clear from the name - are a purely defensive system required to repel air attacks," Lavrov said.

"We do not violate any laws, and we do not want to loose the image of a secure supplier," he said.

The Russian Foreign Ministry earlier expressed concerns over reports about Israel's airstrikes at facilities in Damascus suburbs on May 3 and May 5. Syrian authorities in particular reported that Israel attacked an R&D center in Damascus suburbs on May 5.

Israel has neither confirmed nor refuted the airstrikes reports. According Israeli media, the airstrikes targeted not the R&D center but Iranian missiles that were transferred from Iran to Hezbollah in Lebanon through Syrian territory.

Voice of

Israel Threatens More Syria Attacks, Warns Assad Not to Retaliate

Source : Strategic-Culture.org

Israeli officials have issued a bizarre statement today regarding their intentions to continue attacking Syria in the near future, warning Syrian President Bashar Assad that he’d better just lie down and accept it.

The statement, made by an unnamed “senior” official, said Israel was determined to continue its strikes, and that if Assad dared to retaliate for any of the attacks “he will risk forfeiting his regime, for Israel will retaliate.”

President Assad has faced much internal criticism for not responded to this month’s previous Israeli attacks, and has fought off those complaints with statements threatening to eventually attack Israel in response, but at a time of his own choosing.

Though Israel often openly talks about attacking its neighbors, and indeed often follows through with those attacks, it is unprecedented for them to preface the attack by threatening more attacks if the target retaliates.

The threatening regime change, however, may be a blunder on Israel’s part, as it will surely be used by the Assad government in the days and weeks to come as evidence that Israel is secretly backing the al-Qaeda-endorsed rebellion, a charge the rebels desperately want to avoid.

Russia has data that Israel targeted Syrian defense facilities in May - Lavrov

Source : Strategic-Culture.org

Moscow has data that Israel's airstrikes on Syrian territory in early May targeted Syria's defense facilities, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

"We said that we want to study each circumstance of this issue, and we have clarified a lot for ourselves. We wanted to understand what targets were attacked," Lavrov said in an interview with Lebanon's al-Mayadeen TV channel.

"According to our assessment the targets are elements of Syria's defense system. I do not want to go into detail," he said.

The Russian Foreign Ministry earlier expressed concerns over reports about Israel's airstrikes at facilities in Damascus suburbs on May 3 and May 5.

Syrian authorities in particular reported that Israel attacked an R&D center in Damascus suburbs on May 5.

Israel has neither confirmed nor refuted the airstrikes reports.

According Israeli media, the airstrikes targeted not the R&D center but Iranian missiles that were transferred from Iran to Hezbollah in Lebanon through Syrian territory.

REPORT: Israel boosts military maneuvers along border with Syria and Lebanon

Source : LBCI

Israel's threats to topple the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, in case he were to respond to any future attacks launched by the Jewish state against Damascus, were accompanied by a series of military maneuvers carried out at the borders of the Golan Heights.

In this context, the Israeli army increased the number of troops and promoted the movement of military tanks and jets in a number of regions near the borders with Syria and Lebanon under the pretext of "mounting danger overshadowing the area". The military also filed a complaint with the international forces after two rockets hit the Israeli- occupied Mount Hermon.

This report will shed light on the message delivered to Syrian President Assad on behalf of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu whereby he asserted that his air force will continue attacking Syria. The report will also examine the general situation in Israel amid the regions current developments.

Israel recognizes its failure to withheld the 'S- 300' for Syria

شبكة عاجل الإخبارية

Israeli media means say that the last visit of the Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to Russia “has failed” in convincing the Russians not to complete the contract of advanced weapons to Syria.

Maariv newspaper says that “Netanyahu has failed to persuade the Russian side not to complete the deal of Russian weapons to Syria, adding that "Russia sees the Syrian regime as a strategic ally." Netanyahu has finished his visit to Russia the day before yesterday after meeting the Russian president Vladimir Putin without revealing the results of the visit. As reports say that one of the most prominent aims of this visit is to convince Russia to hold the contract of sending the developed missiles S-300 to Syria

S-300 possessed by Damascus that exceeds the efficiency of US Patriot missiles

شبكة عاجل الإخبارية

Al-Quds al-Arabi newspaper reveals that Moscow has handed over a group of S-200 missiles with the launchers to Syrian Arab Army after breaking out the crisis in Syria and that the Syrian experts have finished their trainings on these which missile system is completely under the overseeing and the control of Syrian side without the necessity to be administrated by Russian experts.”

The newspaper quotes of a Syrian military source as saying that the length of S-200 is more than 150 km that is able to hit the goal accurately,” pointing that “Benjamin Netanyahu may hear Russian speech that the Russian Defense Ministry has handed over Damascus missile system S-300 and that it has done, and this system is now in Syrian territory, "the source" hinted that the next step is to move the process of overseeing the management of the system and control to the Syrian military party fully. "

S-300 is the most developed missile around the world which exceeds the efficiency of US Patriot missiles.

#Syria is gathering volunteers for operations in the Golan Heights

Source : Google Translate

The Popular Front "Transformation and the release of Syria," announced a call for volunteers to carry out operations against Israel in the occupied Golan Heights, said in an interview with RIA Novosti the front Deputy Prime Minister of Syria Qadri Jamil.

"We write and form a volunteer fighting units for guerrilla warfare in the Golan," - said Jamil.

He confirmed that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad gave a "green light" to carry out operations against Israel in the Golan Palestinian groups in Syria and said that the Golan will be the front of resistance to Israel.

"With the Palestinians, we will coordinate operations in the Golan," - said Jamil.

Jamil admitted that in the current environment, Syria will not be able to wage war with Israel and symmetrically to answer several airstrikes caused in recent months, the Israeli air force on Syria.

"In recent years, the Golan Heights were not a direct line of confrontation, but Israel in recent weeks and months, air strikes on Syria several times. Truce collapsed almost. Syria is not in a position to fight a war under these conditions. Or to answer the same Israelis - the army against Army. A left unanswered too bad and harmful. Objectively, there is one way out - to enable people to protect their land, as long as the state can not solve this problem, "- said Jamil.

According to him, to resolve the issue of the Golan Heights, occupied by Israel, through negotiation is not possible.

"We as a party and as a front for a long time felt that the issue of the Golan Heights in the current balance of power can not be solved through negotiations. Therefore, to change the balance of power, it is necessary to introduce a new component - the fighting forces that can conduct operations against the enemy. This is our right, and international laws allow us to do it, "- said Jamil.

So urc e: RIA Novo s ti

Russian Pacific Fleet Warships to Enter Mediterranean

Source : RIA Novosti

VLADIVOSTOK, May 13 (RIA Novosti) - A group of warships from Russia’s Pacific Fleet is about to deploy to the Mediterranean Sea for the first time in decades, fleet spokesman RoRman Martov said on Monday.

The group has entered the Red Sea and is preparing to transit the Suez Canal, and should reach the Mediterranean by mid-May, he said.

The group, including the destroyer Admiral Panteleyev, the amphibious warfare ships Peresvet and Admiral Nevelsky, the tanker Pechenga and the salvage/ rescue tug Fotiy Krylov left the port of Vladivostok on March 19 to join Russia’s Mediterranean task force.

The task force currently includes the large anti-submarine ship Severomorsk, the frigate Yaroslav Mudry, the salvage/rescue tugs Altai and SB-921 and the tanker Lena from the Northern and Baltic Fleets, as well as the Ropucha-II Class landing ship Azov from the Black Sea Fleet.

The task force may be enlarged to include nuclear submarines, Navy Commander Admiral Viktor Chirkov said on Sunday.

The Defense Ministry said in April Russia has begun setting up a naval task force in the Mediterranean, sending several warships from the Pacific Fleet to the region. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said in March a permanent naval task force in the Mediterranean was needed to defend Russia’s interests in the region.

A senior Defense Ministry official said the Mediterranean task force's command and control agencies will be based either in Novorossiysk, Russia, or in Sevastopol, Ukraine.

Admiral Vladimir Komoyedov, head of the parliamentary defense committee, previously told RIA Novosti that the Mediterranean task force should be comprised of 10 warships and support vessels as part of several tactical groups tasked with attack, antisubmarine warfare and minesweeping.

The Soviet Union maintained its 5th Mediterranean Squadron from 1967 until 1992. It was formed to counter the US Navy's 6th Fleet during the Cold War, and consisted of 30-50 warships and auxiliary vessels.

‘Saudi Arabia would support Israel in possible Iran strike’

Source :

  TEHRAN, May 12 (MNA) – The remarks by the President of Saudi Middle East Center for Strategic and Legal Studies on Saudi backing Israel in case of strike against Iran has taken Israeli circles by surprise.

Al-Alam reported that Oded Granot Israeli Channel 1 Arab world analyst had said an extensive drill has been launched in Persian Gulf with 22 countries participating, among them the US, UK, and all Persian Gulf countries, and Lebanon, with the objective of confronting ‘the axis of evil.’

“The aim is to prepare for a confrontation with Iran,” he added. Demining practices and vessel mobility in Persian Gulf were examined.

The Israeli analyst also pointed to the remarks by the Director of the Center of the Strategic Studies in Jeddah, and quoted him as having said that the drills had a message to Iran and supported Israel’s actions. “The director also said if Israel attacked Syria, Saudi Arabia would take sides with Israel,” the Israeli analyst said.

Israeli Channel 1 also aired the remarks by Anwar Majid Eshki, the President of Saudi Middle East Center for Strategic and Legal Studies on Aljazeera Network. Eshki was quoted to having claimed that the hypothetical enemy was Iran in the drills. Iran is on the eve of elections, and it may intervene in Syria against Israel. “The drills were a sort of ensuring Israel. If Israel attacked Iran, the countries participating in drills would carry out their roles,” Anwar Eshki was quoted to having said.

Oded Granot said that the remarks by Eshki were incredible and no such comments would have been heard before. “In the view of Saudi Arabia and Persian Gulf Sheikhdoms, only Israel and the US would protect them against a nuclear Iran,” he added.

SH/MR MNA END

Iran: “New” Hezbollah appears in Syria

شبكة عاجل الإخبارية 

Iran has announced that a “Syrian Public Resistance similar to Hezbollah in Lebanon is being formed in the vicinity of al-Golan the Syrian occupied territory”.

The head of the Iranian General Staff of the Armed Forces Mr. Hasan Firouzabadi assures that “Fortunately and the strategic insight that we witness those day the establishment of public resistance movements Like Hezbollah and the popular committees have been formed in the territory the army liberated from the control of the Syrian Arab mercenaries forces takfirist ".

Abadi says that “the war in Syria has ended and he is no longer the West the opportunity to re-evaluate attitudes toward Syria.”