Israel is not interested in escalating the situation in Syria, and airstrikes on the territory of this country are of defensive nature, spokesman for the Israeli army Jonathan Conricus said.
"Syrians and Iranians, from our point of view, are playing with fire. Syrians — when they allow the Iranians to attack Israel from their territory. We are full of determination, ready and able to make everyone who tries to attack us pay the high price," the spokesperson stressed.
Comenting on the wave of IDF's strikes on numerous Syrian and Iranian military targets in Syria, Conricus said that "these were defensive actions, provoked by an act of aggression from Iran."
"We are defending our sovereignty, airspace and civilians… Our interest is to give Israeli citizens an opportunity to enjoy the weekend without further escalation," he added.
The IDF spokesman also noted that the incident, from the Israeli point of view, was not over yet.
Earlier in the day, the Israeli army said its helicopter downed an Iranian drone after it crossed into the Golan Heights, controlled by Israel. Afterwards the IDF struck at what the Israeli military said were Iranian targets in Syria, prompting fire from the Syrian air defense systems. The Syrian side said it hit several fighter jets, however, the Israeli side refuted the claims saying that only one F-16 jet was downed in northern Israel.
