The United States informed Israel about Suleimani operation in Iraq

Politics 15:15 05.01.2020
Israel was notified in advance of the US plan to assassinate Iran's top military general Qasem Soleimani, Israeli military and diplomatic analysts revealed on Friday., Eurasia Diary reports citing Arab News.

Speaking to Israel's Channel 13 news, the analysts added no further details due to heavy censorship around the tense security situation.

"Our assessment is that the United States informed Israel about this operation in Iraq, apparently a few days ago," Barak Ravid, a journalist closely linked to Israeli security establishment told Channel 13 on Friday evening.

An Israeli army officer speaking on condition of anonymity also told the Los Angeles Times that the operation to take out Soleimani "did not come as a surprise".

Israel has been on high alert since Friday's strike, holding emergency security talks later the same day and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cutting short a trip to Greece.

Defence Minister Naftali Bennett chaired a meeting of security chiefs, including the heads of the army, the National Security Council and the Mossad intelligence agency, his office said.

Netanyahu broke off an official visit to Athens and flew home, expressing support for the overnight US strike that killed General Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad

"Just as Israel has the right of self-defence, the United States has exactly the same right," Netanyahu said as he boarded his flight from Athens.

"President (Donald) Trump deserves all the credit for acting swiftly, forcefully and decisively," he said. "Israel stands with the United States in its just struggle for peace, security and self-defence."

On the ground, the Israeli army closed Mount Hermon ski resort on the annexed Golan Heights, a disputed territory which borders Syria and Lebanon.

Fighters of the Iran-backed Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah, Israel's bitter foe with which it fought a devastating war in 2006, are deployed on the other side of the armistice line from which Israel fears reprisal attacks.

Although an Israeli military source said there were no new troop deployments, tanks and soldiers sealed off access to the Hermon site, while a battery of the Iron Dome missile defence system was also spotted.

Late on Friday, however, the army announced the site would be opened as usual on Saturday, "in accordance with a situation assessment".

The heightened state of alert came after Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed "severe revenge" for Soleimani's killing, the biggest escalation yet in a feared proxy war between Iran and the US on Iraqi soil. 

"Meting out the appropriate punishment to these criminal assassins... will be the responsibility and task of all resistance fighters worldwide," Hassan Nasrallah said.

Soleimani, head of the Quds Force in Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards, had long also been in Israel's sights for his alleged links to attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets worldwide.

Among them, Israel's Haaretz daily said, were the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community centre in Buenos Aires and an attack on an Israeli tour bus in Burgas, Bulgaria in 2012.

Ilham Aliyev participating in international forum themed ‘COP29 and Green Vision for Azerbaijan’ at ADA University - VİDEO

News line

AI giants adopt safety measures to prevent child exploitation
AI giants adopt safety measures to prevent child exploitation
21:00 23.04.2024
Raisi: There could be nothing left of Israel's govt if it attacks again
20:25 23.04.2024
President Aliyev: We aim for COP29's success in addressing climate change issue
20:00 23.04.2024
Lithuania welcomes agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia
Lithuania welcomes agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia
19:19 23.04.2024
Ukraine receives armored personnel carriers from Lithuania
Ukraine receives armored personnel carriers from Lithuania
19:00 23.04.2024
Sergey Stankevich: 'Soon, the new era in the history of the South Caucasus will be talked' - INTERVIEW
18:45 23.04.2024
Armenian Parliament rejected draft of opposition regarding border delimitation with Azerbaijan
18:18 23.04.2024
Pundit: Iran sees Azerbaijan as a potential threat to itself
18:00 23.04.2024
Czechia to hold extraordinary meeting of NATO foreign ministers in May
17:48 23.04.2024
Australian PM calls Elon Musk an 'arrogant billionaire' in row over attack footage
Australian PM calls Elon Musk an 'arrogant billionaire' in row over attack footage
17:29 23.04.2024
Umud Mirzayev: 'Revanchist politics led Armenia to disaster'
17:15 23.04.2024
Ilham Aliyev: Azerbaijan closely partners with all Eurasian Union members, except Armenia.
17:00 23.04.2024
Peacekeepers leaving Karabakh, peace in the South Caucasus, World War III? - Expert talk on Ednews
16:45 23.04.2024
Chinese Entities Procure Nvidia Chips Despite US Export Restrictions
Chinese Entities Procure Nvidia Chips Despite US Export Restrictions
16:33 23.04.2024
First border marker installed along Azerbaijan-Armenia border
16:25 23.04.2024
Poland: We’re ready to host nuclear weapons
16:12 23.04.2024
President: Azerbaijan's economy is self-sufficient and shows sustainable growth even during crises
15:58 23.04.2024
Iran's attack on Israel, withdrawal of Russian peacekeepers, peace talks... - Insights from Andrew Korybko
15:35 23.04.2024
Azerbaijani, Czech FMs make speech at joint press conference
14:46 23.04.2024
Ilham Aliyev participating in international forum themed ‘COP29 and Green Vision for Azerbaijan’ at ADA University - VİDEO
14:22 23.04.2024
Erdogan warns Armenia: Opportunities doors are never left open forever
14:12 23.04.2024
Azerbaijan weather forecast for April 24
Azerbaijan weather forecast for April 24
14:00 23.04.2024
Elnur Mammadov: Armenians set up mine traps to prevent return of ethnic Azerbaijanis
13:48 23.04.2024
The Deputy MFA Elnur Mammadov exposed the fascist ideology of Armenians in The Hague Court
13:32 23.04.2024
Azerbaijani Envoy: Azerbaijan’s appeal to Int’l Court relates to essence of CERD, unlike Armenia’s claim
13:11 23.04.2024
Germany is preparing for war with Russia
12:59 23.04.2024
FM Jeyhun Bayramov meets with his Czech counterpart
12:26 23.04.2024
Oral Hearings Continue in "Armenia v. Azerbaijan" Case at UN International Court of Justice - LIVE - VİDEO
11:59 23.04.2024
US State Department: Ethnic Azerbaijanis are discriminated against in Iran
10:50 23.04.2024
Serbia's president warns of 'unpredictable scenarios with huge consequences' in Balkans
10:39 23.04.2024
Ammunition found in Khankandi
10:25 23.04.2024
Azerbaijani minister meets with UK permanent representative to UN
10:13 23.04.2024
Azerbaijani oil price falls slightly
Azerbaijani oil price falls slightly
10:01 23.04.2024
Jeyhun Bayramov embarks on visit to Czech Republic
09:49 23.04.2024
Another 150 IDPs leave for Fuzuli
09:43 23.04.2024
Azerbaijani and Russian Presidents meet railway veterans and workers to mark 50th anniversary of Baikal-Amur Mainline
09:38 23.04.2024
Armenian journalist living in France denied entry to capital Yerevan - VİDEO
09:28 23.04.2024
10 dead after Malaysian Navy helicopters collide mid-air - VİDEO
09:16 23.04.2024
EU ministers warned not to relax support for Ukraine amid requests for air defence aid
09:00 23.04.2024
Azerbaijan and Russia jointly participate in implementation of North-South Transport Corridor - Putin
23:30 22.04.2024
Hamısı