Israel warns against Iran's military presence in Syria

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday welcomed the ceasefire in Syria but warned that Israel won't allow Iran and Hezbollah to establish a military presence in the neighboring country.
"Israel will welcome a genuine ceasefire in Syria," Netanyahu said at his weekly cabinet meeting, referring to a ceasefire agreement reached Friday between the United States and Russia to quell fighting in southwestern Syria.
"This ceasefire must not enable the establishment of a military presence by Iran and its proxies in Syria in general and in southern Syria in particular," he added.
Netanyahu said that Israel will continue to monitor developments beyond its disputed border with Syria, "while strongly upholding our red lines."
He explained that these red lines include preventing Hezbollah, a Lebanon-based, Iran-backed militia that fights along President Bashar Assad's army, from growing in Syria.
"Israel will prevent Hezbollah, or Iranian forces, from establishing a ground presence along our border, and prevent the establishment of an Iranian military presence in Syria as a whole," said Netanyahu.
He also told his ministers that both the U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Russian President Vladimir Putin assured him in talks last week that they will take the Israeli interest into account. "They told me that they understand Israel's position and will take our demands into account," said Netanyahu.
Israel had repeatedly declared it would not intervene in the internal fighting in Syria.
However, it is widely believed that Israel often carried out airstrikes on weapons convoys in Syria, and has been providing medical treatment to hundreds of wounded Syrians who reached the border.
In addition, it has frequently retaliated errant fire that accidentally hit its territory with airstrikes on Assad's army positions.
On Friday, Tillerson said that the United States, Russia and Jordan agreed to foster a ceasefire in southwest Syria that will begin at noon on Sunday.
The agreement was achieved after meetings between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin during the G20 conference in Germany.
Deputy UN Special Envoy for Syria Ramzy Ezzeldin Ramzy welcomed the deal as a "step in the right direction."
In a press briefing held in Damascus on Saturday, Ramzy said that the UN supports the efforts to de-escalate violence in Syria.

source; xinhua