Netanyahu warns Iran not to test Israel's resolve

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called Iran the world's greatest threat and warned its leaders not to test his country's resolve.

Holding a piece of what he said was an Iranian drone after its incursion into Israeli airspace this month, Netanyahu told the Munich Security Conference: "Israel will not allow the regime to put a noose of terror around our neck.

"We will act if necessary not just against Iran’s proxies but against Iran itself. Do not test Israel's resolve."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the Munich Security Conference on February 18, 2018 in Munich, southern Germany. /VCG Photo

Addressing the Munich event for the first time, Netanyahu urged gathered US and European officials and diplomats to counter Iran immediately; displaying a map showing what he said was Iran’s growing presence in the Middle East.

He said Tehran was increasing its power as the US-led coalition against ISIL in Iraq and Syria regains territory from militants.

An Israeli Iron Dome defense system, designed to intercept and destroy incoming short-range rockets and artillery shells, deployed in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights near the border with Syria on February 11. /VCG Photo

"The unfortunate thing is that as ISIS compresses and Iran moves in, it is trying to establish this continuous empire surrounding the Middle East from the south in Yemen but also trying to create a land bridge from Iran to Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Gaza," Netanyahu said.

"This is a very dangerous development for our region."

Tensions surged on February 10 when anti-aircraft fire downed an Israeli warplane returning from a bombing raid on Iran-backed positions in Syria.

The remains of a missile that landed in the southern Lebanese village of Kaoukaba, near the border with Syria on February 10, 2018. /VCG Photo

That was the most serious confrontation yet between Israel and Iranian-backed forces based across the border.

Source(s): Reuters