Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon on Sunday, 19 Elul 5773 confirmed Syrian forces did indeed use non-conventional weaponry in the ongoing civil war in that country.

In a meeting with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, Ya’alon confirmed “the non-conventional regime used chemical weapons” in the civil war in Syria, leading to the deaths of over 1,000 people. Ya’alon pointed out that this was not the first time the Syrian regime, which is backed by Hizbullah and Iran, resorted to the use of chemical weapons. “Israel is not involved but we have our red lines and we will stand by them” he explained.

The senior minister added “we will not permit the moving of weapons to Hizbullah or other terror forces, and we will not permit the transfer of chemical weapons. We will respond to all attacks against us. At the end of the day, we are responsible to defend ourselves with our own means. We are not relying on any foreign armies to protect us.”

Regarding Lebanon, the defense minister explained “there is an army and there is a government, a Hizbullah lives in both.” He explained that Hizbullah continues to violate the Second Lebanon War ceasefire, UN Resolution 1701 and the terrorist organization uses the civilians in villages as shields as Hizbullah stores rockets and weapons in that area for future use against Israel.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)