Israel takes Nasrallah's threats of revenge for Kuntar seriously

The Israeli Yedioth Ahronoth said Friday that the Israeli army is taking Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah's threats of revenge after the assassination of Samir Kuntar in Syria seriously.

The paper quoted Israeli security officials as saying that the Hezbollah leader would be making a grave mistake if he thinks the Israeli army will sit quietly if his organization responds to Kuntar's assassination with attacks.

"The army's General Staff is conducting threat assessments about the way in which Nasrallah plans on realizing his threat, which bring about the fear that the Hezbollah Secretary General may mistake Israel's likely response to a revenge attack, whether it be in the north (near the Syrian or Lebanese border), abroad, or even inside Israel," the paper said.

"Senior Israeli army members remind us of Nasrallah's words in the summer of 2006, after the Second Lebanon War, in which he admitted to underestimating the Israeli government's response to the ambush in which Eldad Regev and Udi Goldwasser were kidnapped," the paper added.

The paper said that Nasrallah is also underestimating Israel's intentions to respond harshly if any harm comes to its civilians, soldiers, or sovereignty.

A report published on YNet quoted senior Israeli official as saying 'unequivocally' that Nasrallah and Hezbollah "would be making a big mistake if they perpetrated a lethal terror attack in an attempt to avenge Kuntar's assassination, which they attribute to Israel."

"True, Hezbollah and its fighters have gained important combat experience in Syria, as well as a huge stockpile of rockets and missiles, but they've also left 1,300 of their dead on Syrian ground, and suffered thousands of wounded. This fact raises ire even among Nasrallah's Shia faction," the report read.

Source: MENA