Israel won't tolerate Iran presence in Syria, warns Netanyahu

Jerusalem, Oct 17: Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned Iran that he will not tolerate an Iranian military presence in Syria.

Netanyahu said his meeting with visiting Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu on Tuesday focused mostly on Iran's efforts to establish a presence next door.

Netanyahu said that "Iran has to understand that Israel will not allow this."

The meeting comes a day after Israel destroyed a Russian-made, anti-aircraft missile launcher that took aim at its planes.

Israel has largely stayed out of the fighting in Syria but has carried out dozens of airstrikes on alleged weapons convoys bound for Lebanese militant Hezbollah group. It is also concerned that arch-enemy Iran will plant itself on Israel's doorstep. Israel and Russia have established a special mechanism to prevent friction between their air forces in Syria.

Shoygu arrived in Tel Aviv on Monday for his first official visit to Israel. His trip had a rocky start, coming hours after the IDF bombed an anti-aircraft battery belonging to Russia's ally, Syria, after it had earlier fired an interceptor missile at an Israeli plane.

PTI