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Israel hit suspected chemical weapons sites in Syria with airstrikes over the weekend in an attempt to destroy the Assad regime’s capabilities before they fall into rebel hands, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said on Monday.
Israeli warplanes have carried out numerous strikes against such “strategic weapons” since the rebel offensive in Syria began two weeks ago, a person familiar with developments in the country said. Such capabilities “should not fall into the wrong hands,” the person added.
On Monday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the military to continue strikes “all over Syria” to destroy weapons including “surface-to-air missiles, air defense systems, surface-to-surface missiles, cruise missiles, long-range missiles and surface-to-surface missiles towards the sea.”
Israeli tanks and infantry also crossed the border in the occupied Golan Heights into Syrian territory, capturing the previously demilitarized buffer zone and other strategic positions abandoned by the Syrian army.
This is a developing story
