Iranian Officials: Israel Will Be First Victim of a Syria Attack

Iranian officials have issued warnings that if a U.S.-led coalition attacks Syria Israel could find itself in the line of fire.

“If such an incident takes place, which is impossible, the Zionist regime will be the first victim of a military attack on Syria,” Iran’s Fars new agency quoted senior parliamentary official Hossein Sheikholeslam as saying on Monday. Iranian officials often refer to Israel as the “Zionist regime” or “Zionist entity”.)

Sheikholeslam’s warning follows a similar one from a senior Syrian official on Monday: Khalaf Muftah, a former assistant information minister in Syria, claimed that Damscus would hold Israel as being “behind the (Western) aggression and (it) will therefore come under fire,” reports the Times of Israel.

On Tuesday another Iranian parliamentarian, Mansur Haqiqatpur, also emphasized the threat of retaliation against Israel in the event of a military strike on Syria. If it were to occur, “the flames of outrage of the region’s revolutionaries will point toward the Zionist regime,” said Haqiqatpur.

The series of threats come in the wake of increased momentum towards military intervention in Syria from Western governments. The Obama administration, as well as Britain and France, says that there is “undeniable” evidence that President Bashar Assad’s regime used chemical weapons on civilians last week, leaving hundreds dead.

As the U.K. works on a draft resolution it will put to the UN Security Council on Wednesday “authorizing necessary measures to protect civilians” in Syria, UN weapons inspectors have resumed their investigation into the alleged chemical weapons attack last week.

Meanwhile, reports have emerged over the weekend that Israelis are ramping up gas mask distribution. The Israel Postal Company has seen a fourfold rise in gas masks requests across the country since news broke of the suspected use of nerve agents by Assad.

[Fars news agency]

[Times of Israel]

http://world.time.com/2013/08/28/iranian-officials-israel-will-be-first-victim-of-a-syria-attack/