Israel Ready to Adopt Measures to Prevent Iran From Gaining Foothold in Syria

ST.PETERSBURG (Sputnik) - Israel is ready to take preventive steps in order to protect the country from attacks of Iran, which is seeking to gain a foothold in neighboring Syria, Israeli Minister for Jerusalem Affairs Zeev Elkin told Sputnik.

“We will introduce preventive measures that we have not done before in order to prevent the military strengthening of Iran in Syria,” Elkin said on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

The minister went on to cite the recent attacks on Israel from the Syrian territory as a source of concern.

READ MORE: Iran-Israel Tensions Likely to Rise on All Fronts, Including Syria — Analysts

“Iran is trying to turn Syria into a foothold for attacks on Israel. Recently, Israel has been attacked by 30 missiles launched from the Syrian territory. Of course, Israel could not turn a blind eye in such situation,” Elkin added.

The Iranian military presence in Syria is also a concern for the Damascus government, the official underlined.

“Instead of benefiting from stability, [Syria] practically pays the price for the Iranian aggression. I have no doubt that the Israeli, Russian and Syrian interests lie in the suspension of the Iranian military presence on the territory of Syria,” Elkin said.

Israel has repeatedly said that it would not allow Iran to turn Syria into its military foothold and launched multiple strikes on Iranian positions in Syria.