Israel 'Closes Airspace' amid 'Panic' over Possible Iranian Retaliation

Israel on Monday closed its airspace near Syria's border and over the occupied Golan Heights amid concerns over possible retaliation by Tehran to recent strikes that killed Iranians in Syria, Al-Jazeera TV said.

“The closure of Israel's airspace on Syria's border will continue until the end of next month,” Al-Jazeera reported.

Al-Mayadeen television meanwhile quoted Israeli media outlets as saying that WhatsApp messages have sparked “panic” in Israel about an Iranian attack in the next 24 hours.

Israel newspaper Haaretz meanwhile said that Israel has informed Washington and Moscow that it “will not stand idly by should Iran attack it from Syria.”

Missile strikes Sunday on central Syria killed 26 pro-regime fighters, most of them Iranians, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, in a raid that bore Israel's hallmarks. The strikes in the Hama and Aleppo provinces destroyed surface-to-surface missiles, the monitor said.

Israeli Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz told army radio on Monday morning that he was "not aware" of the latest strikes.

But, he said, "all the violence and instability in Syria is the result of Iran's attempts to establish a military presence there. Israel will not allow the opening of a northern front in Syria."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was due to speak later Monday about a "significant development" on the Iran nuclear deal, his office said.

Syria remains technically at war with neighboring Israel, which is concerned at the growing presence of Iranian forces and those of Tehran's Lebanese ally Hizbullah on Syrian territory.

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman vowed in an interview Thursday to strike at any attempt by Iran to establish a "military foothold" in Syria.

Iran has forces deployed in Syria to support Assad's regime, as well as supervising the involvement of several Shiite militia groups it sponsors, some of them from other countries such as Iraq or Afghanistan.

There was no immediate comment from Tehran on the Sunday strikes, but the reformist-linked ILNA news agency quoted a security official who did not deny the strike and said any reports on the military situation in Syria should come from Damascus.

"The Syrians must announce the statistics as they are responsible. We are present in this country at the request of the government of Syria," said Hossein Naghavi Hosseini, spokesman for parliamentary national security and foreign policy commission.