https://www.timesofisrael.com/minister-i...-russians/
Quote:An Israeli cabinet minister has warned that if the Syrians use their recently supplied advanced Russian air defense missiles to bring down Israeli planes over Israeli territory, the launchers would be targeted — even if that means endangering Russian military specialists at the launch sites.
Environmental Protection Minister Ze’ev Elkin, who is also co-chair of the Russia-Israel Intergovernmental Commission, told Russian media Monday that it was a “big mistake” for Moscow to supply its ally Syria with the S-300 missile system, because the advanced missiles, which are considered a significant threat to Israeli air power in the area, “might lead to destabilization of the situation.”
Quote:Elkin cautioned that “considering the mess” that the Syrian army was in, the Syrians cannot be trusted to operate the equipment correctly and may end up shooting down an “Israeli military or commercial plane over Israeli territory.”
Israel, he noted, reacts to attacks on its territory and aircraft with “practical actions,” which would “undoubtedly take place” against the launchers should Israeli aircraft be hit in Israeli airspace.
Minister of Jerusalem Affairs, Zeev Elkin, speaks at the Jerusalem Center for Public and State Issues, on September 13, 2017. (Hadas Parush/Flash90)
“I greatly hope that there would be no Russian military specialists [at the missile launch sites],” he said, stressing that in the past Israel has taken pains to ensure that Russian military personnel are not hurt through its actions in Syria.
The Israeli Air Force has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria in recent years against targets linked to Iran and its Lebanese proxy, Hezbollah, which Israel says are working to establish a military presence there that could threaten the Jewish state.