Israel would react harshly if attacked by Syria: report

Once attacked by Syria, Israel's retaliation will be much harsher than its reaction to the July 12 cross-border raid launched by Lebanese Hezbollah, the Jerusalem Post reported on Monday.

While most Israeli officials claim there is a slim possibility for a war with Syria, the report said, Israel is still preparing just in case. The retaliation, defense officials interviewed by the post warned, would be harsher, fiercer and far deadlier.

The major difference, the officials were quoted as saying that, would be the targets that Israeli army would attack.

It would not only include military infrastructure, such as bases, rocket launchers and silos, but also government buildings, headquarters, power plants, electricity grids and water reservoirs.

The Israeli army will shut down entire Syria, the officials said.

The report said that Israel's military intelligence assessments for 2007 presented recently to the General Staff indicated that war with Syria is closer than it was in 2006.

In an interview with the Kuwaiti daily Al-Anba over the weekend, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said, "We are preparing for an Israeli attack at any moment."

In response, Israel is closely examining Syria's moves after al- Assad's statements.

Following an instruction issued by the political echelon, all Israeli intelligence collection bodies are working to clarify what the Syrian president is attempting to achieve.

However, Israeli media said that despite al-Assad's remarks, no decision had been made to raise the Israeli army's alert level on the Syrian front.

Israeli diplomatic officials were quoted as saying that there was no immediate threat from Syria. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister's Office refused to respond to al-Assad's remarks.

Source: Xinhua