HAIFA: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Iran Tuesday that Israeli missiles can travel “very far,” on the eve of a conference in Poland about peace and security in the Middle East.
Speaking during a visit to a naval base in the northern port of Haifa, Netanyahu said: “The missiles you see behind me can go very far, against any enemy, including Iran’s proxies in our region” — an apparent reference to Lebanon’s powerful Hezbollah movement.
“We are constantly working according to our understanding and the need to prevent Iran and its proxies from entrenching on our northern boder and in our region in general,” Netanyahu added.
“We are doing everything necessary,” said Netanyahu, as he inspected Israel’s Iron Dome aerial defense system.
Netanyahu has repeatedly said Israel would not allow Iran and its ally Hezbollah to entrench themselves in neighboring Syria where they are backing the Damascus regime against rebels and some extremists.
Israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes in Syria in the past few years against Iranian and Hezbollah targets.
On Wednesday the Israeli prime minister is set to take part in an international conference in Warsaw co-organized by the United States and Poland.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last month announced the two-day conference saying it would focus on the “destabilising influence” of Iran in the Middle East.
But with few RSVPs coming, Poland and the US have toned down the agenda to focus on ways of promoting peace and security in the Middle East.
During the conference US President Donald Trump son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner, who has been putting final touches on a “deal of the century” for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, will make a rare speaking appearance.
Kushner may offer hints of the US peace proposal but is not expected to unveil the full deal until after the April 9 election in Israel.
Israel warns Iran that its missiles can travel ‘very far’
Israel warns Iran that its missiles can travel ‘very far’
- Netanyahu speaking on the eve of a conference in Poland about peace and security in the Middle East
- Netanyahu has repeatedly said Israel would not allow Iran to entrench itself in Syria
Turkiye detains 110 suspects in operation targeting Daesh after deadly clash
- In Tuesday’s operation, police carried out raids on 114 addresses in Istanbul and two other provinces, arresting 110 of the total 115 suspects that they sought
ISTANBUL: Turkish police detained 110 suspects in an operation against Daesh on Tuesday, a day after three police officers and six militants were killed in a gunfight in northwest Turkiye, the Istanbul chief prosecutor’s office said.
Police conducted an eight-hour siege at a house in the town of Yalova, on the Sea of Marmara coast south of Istanbul, a week after more than 100 suspected Daesh members were detained in connection with alleged plans to carry out Christmas and New Year attacks. Eight police officers and another security force member were wounded in the raid on the property, which was one of more than 100 addresses targeted by authorities on Monday.
In Tuesday’s operation, police carried out raids on 114 addresses in Istanbul and two other provinces, arresting 110 of the total 115 suspects that they sought, the prosecutor’s statement said. It said various digital materials and documents were seized.
Turkiye has stepped up operations against suspected Daesh militants this year, as the group returns to prominence globally. The US carried out a strike against the militants in northwest Nigeria last week, while two gunmen who attacked a Hanukkah event at Sydney’s Bondi Beach this month appeared to be inspired by Daesh, Australian police have said. On December 19, the US military launched strikes against dozens of Daesh targets in Syria in retaliation for an attack on American personnel.
Almost a decade ago, the jihadist group was blamed for a series of attacks on civilian targets in Turkiye, including gun attacks on an Istanbul nightclub and the city’s main airport, killing dozens of people. Turkiye was a key transit point for foreign fighters, including those of Daesh, entering and leaving Syria during the war there.
Police have carried out regular operations against the group in subsequent years and there have been few attacks since the wave of violence between 2015-2017.
