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Israel said to send calming messages to Iran via Russia
Jerusalem sought to reassure Tehran, Hezbollah that it does not want tensions to escalate to war, Channel 10 reports
ByTimes of Israel staffJanuary 24, 2015, 10:55 am
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IDF troops in the Golan Heights, northern Israel, on January 20, 2015 (Photo credit: Basal Awidat/Flash90)
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Israel has sent calming messages to Iran and Hezbollah via Russia, Channel 10 reported Friday night, clarifying that it is uninterested in an escalating conflict with Tehran or the Lebanese terror group.
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The report, which cited unnamed government sources, followed days of tensions along the northern border, after Iranian and Hezbollah leaders vowed revenge for an airstrike in Syria which left 12 Iranians and Hezbollah operatives dead. The airstrike has been attributed to Israel and though Jerusalem has not officially confirmed it, anonymous government sources have admitted as much.
The dead included an Iranian general and senior Hezbollah commanders, Muhammad Issa and Jihad Mughniyeh, son of slain terror mastermind Imad Mughniyeh.
According to Channel 10, Israeli officials told Moscow that Israel viewed the strike as an act of self-defense, and that Hezbollah had forced Israels hand by building an offensive infrastructure on its border. Jerusalem stressed it did not want the situation to deteriorate into a regional conflict. Russian leaders conveyed this message to Beirut and Tehran.