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US, Israeli officials confirm, Israel launched air strike in Syria

A US official confirmed the Israeli army targeted a building in Syria in an attempt to stop a shipment of Syrian missiles to Hezbollah forces in Lebanon. Israel is invested in keeping Syrian weapons out of the hands of Hezbollah, an ally of Iran.

听has carried out an air strike targeting a shipment of missiles in听听bound for Hezbollah guerrillas in neighbouring听, an Israeli official said on Saturday.

听had long made clear it is prepared to resort to force to prevent advanced Syrian weapons, including President Bashar al-Assad's reputed chemical arsenal, reaching his Shi'ite Muslim Hezbollah allies or听听insurgents taking part in a more than two-year-old uprising against his government.

Hezbollah, allied with听's arch-enemy Iran, waged an inconclusive war with the Jewish state in 2006 and remains a potent threat in Israeli eyes. Israelis also worry that if Assad is toppled,听听rebels could turn his guns on them after four decades of relative calm in the听听border area.

The target of Friday's raid was not a Syrian chemical weapons facility, a regional security source earlier said.

A US official, who also declined to be identified, had told Reuters on Friday the target was apparently a building.

The Israeli official who acknowledged the raid and described its target spoke on condition of anonymity.听听has not formally taken responsibility for the action or confirmed it happened.

The attack took place after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet approved it in a secret meeting on Thursday night, the regional security source said.

CNN quoted unnamed U.S. officials as saying听听most likely conducted the strike "in the Thursday-Friday time frame" and its jets did not enter Syrian air space.

The听听has so-called "standoff" bombs that coast dozens of kilometres (miles) across ground to their targets once fired. That could, in theory, allow听听to attack听听from its own turf or from adjacent听.

Lebanese authorities reported unusual intensive Israeli air force activity over their territory on Thursday and Friday.

A Lebanese security source said his initial impression was that Israeli overflights were monitoring potential arms shipments between听听and听, potentially to Hezbollah.

"We believe that it is linked to听's concerns over the transfer of weapons, particularly chemical weapons, from听to its allies听," said the official, who asked not to be named.

听sources denied having information of a strike. Bashar Ja'afari, the Syrian ambassador to the United Nations, told Reuters: "I'm not aware of any attack right now."

ANTI-AIRCRAFT MISSILES TARGETED?

But听, a commander and spokesman for the rebel听, said: "Our information indicates there was an Israeli strike on a convoy that was transferring missiles to Hezbollah. We have still not confirmed the location."

Rebel units were in disagreement about what type of weapons were in the convoy. A rebel from an information-gathering unit in听听that calls itself "The Syrian Islamic Masts Intelligence" said the convoy carried anti-aircraft missiles.

The rebel, who asked not to be named, said: "There were three strikes by Israeli F-16 jets that damaged a convoy carrying anti-aircraft missiles heading to the Shi'ite Lebanese party (Hezbollah) along the听-military road.

"One strike hit a site near the (Syrian) Fourth Armoured Division in al-Saboura but we have been unable to determine what is in that location".

Saadedine said he did not think the weapons were anti-aircraft. "We have nothing confirmed yet but we are assuming that it is some type of long-range missile that would be capable of carrying chemical materials," he said.

In January this year,听听bombed a convoy in听, apparently hitting weapons destined for Hezbollah, according to diplomats, Syrian rebels and security sources in the region.

听has not formally confirmed carrying out that strike.

Lebanese acting foreign minister Adnan Mansour was critical. "Attacks such as these will result in more tension and blow up the situation which it promoted," he said.

"This will not give听听the peace or security that it wants, in its own way, rather it will push the region into an inflamed struggle and into the unknown."

, a former听听general and national security adviser, said the apparent deadlock in听's civil war, now in its third year, meant the听听had to be prudent in any military intervention.

"I don't anticipate far-reaching consequences in听听or听听(from听's actions)," Eiland told听. "听appears to be conducting itself judiciously."

听remains technically at war with neighbouring听. It captured听's听听in the 1967听听war, built settlements and annexed the land. Yet belligerence was rare and the borderland has remained largely quiet for decades.

But Israeli security concerns have risen since听听fighters linked to听听assumed a prominent role in the insurrection against Assad.

They have also worried that Hezbollah could eventually obtain his chemical arsenal and other advanced weaponry. But there is no risk of that happening for the time being, a senior Israeli official said on Saturday.

"听has large amounts of chemical weaponry and missiles. Everything there is under () control," Defence Ministry strategist听听said in a speech.

Additional reporting by Erika Solomon in听