Israel: We May Strike Syria Again

Israel may be planning more strikes against Syria, and if Bashar al-Assad knows what's good for him he won't retaliate, a senior Israeli official suggested on Wednesday. "Israel is determined to continue to prevent the transfer of advanced weapons to Hezbollah," the official said. "If Syrian President Assad reacts by attacking Israel, or tries to strike Israel through his terrorist proxies, he will risk forfeiting his regime, for Israel will retaliate." It's unclear whether Israel is actually planning another military strike—the first two were carried out two weeks ago—or if the warning was simply meant to keep the volatile Syria at bay. Syria's deputy foreign minister has said that he regards Israel's strikes as a "declaration of war," and that "we will respond immediately and harshly to any additional attack by Israel."