© AP Photo/ Mostafa Qotbi/IRNA
The US intelligence chief's remarks come amid smouldering tensions between Israel and Iran over the IDF's continued airstrikes targeting alleged Iranian military sites in Syria and Tehran's intensified anti-Israel rhetoric.
Speaking before the US Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Dan Coats, the director of national intelligence, warned that Iran was likely to attack Israel if Tel Aviv went ahead with airstrikes on alleged Iranian targets in Syria.
"We assess that
Iran seeks to avoid a major armed conflict with Israel. However, Israeli strikes that result in Iranian casualties
increase the likelihood of Iranian conventional retaliation against Israel", Coats said.
Presenting the views of the US Intelligence Community to the Committee as part of an annual Worldwide Threat Assessment, the director claimed that Tehran's purported efforts to expand its clout in Syria had triggered the Israeli airstrikes:
"Iran continues to pursue permanent military bases and economic deals in Syria and
probably wants to maintain a network of Shia foreign fighters there despite Israeli attacks on Iranian positions in Syria. Iran's efforts to consolidate its influence in Syria and arm Hezbollah have promoted Israeli airstrikes as recently as January 2019 against Iranian positions within Syria and underscore our growing concern about the long-time trajectory of Iranian influence in the region and the risk that conflict will escalate".
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