Israel’s move comes amid fears of possible escalation of violence
Jerusalem:
The Israeli military on Thursday halted furloughs for all combat troops amid concerns that violence could escalate following threats of retaliation following the killing of an Iranian general in Damascus this week.
“Based on the assessment of the situation, it has been decided to temporarily suspend the furlough of all IDF combat units,” the military said in a statement.
“The Israel Defense Forces are on a war footing and are constantly evaluating troop deployments as required,” the statement said.
On Wednesday, the military said it had called up reservists to bolster air defenses. Reuters journalists and Tel Aviv residents said on Thursday that GPS services had been disrupted in an apparent move to protect against missiles.
Iran has vowed to retaliate for the deaths of two of its generals and five military advisers in an airstrike on the Iranian diplomatic compound in the Syrian capital Damascus on Monday.
It was widely believed to be an Israeli attack, one of the most significant to date against Iranian interests in Syria, which Israel has neither confirmed nor denied, threatening to further anger the region.
Israel has waged a six-month war against Hamas since it led an attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7 and has engaged in almost daily fighting with Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah.
Iran has so far avoided directly joining the fray, while supporting allies in attacking Israeli and U.S. targets.
Former Israeli intelligence chief Amos Yadlin said Iran may choose this Friday – the last of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and Iran’s holy city of Jerusalem – to respond directly or through proxies to the Damascus attack .
“I wouldn’t be surprised if Iran took action tomorrow. Don’t panic. Don’t run for shelter,” Yadlin, a senior fellow at the Belfer Center at Harvard Kennedy School, said, citing Israeli air defense systems.
“Please be prepared tomorrow and then depending on the consequences of the attack, the attack could escalate,” Yadlin said.
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