Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused on Tuesday Iran of seeking to deploy “very dangerous” weapons in Syria.
Iran "is seeking to plant very dangerous weapons in Syria for the specific purpose of our destruction," Netanyahu said at the end of a three-way meeting with the leaders of Cyprus and Greece in the Cypriot capital Nicosia.
Netanyahu said Iran wants to "establish Iranian military bases in the Mediterranean", describing such a situation as "a palpable threat to us all".
Israel has repeatedly accused its arch enemy Iran of increasing its presence in neighboring Syria, where Tehran backs the regime of Bashar al-Assad in the seven-year-old civil war.
Iran has accused Israel of being behind deadly missile strikes in April against what it called Iranian "advisers" stationed in Syria.
Israel neither confirmed nor denied responsibility, but has repeatedly said it cannot accept Iran establishing itself militarily in Syria.
Speaking alongside Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, Netanyahu did not discuss the Iranian nuclear deal of which he is a fierce opponent.
Netanyahu made his stance hours before US President Donald Trump is widely expected to announce Washington’s withdrawal from the 2015 deal.
Iranian influence in the region is at the heart of US concerns. Washington has reiterated that Iran's "hegemonic" ambitions in the Middle East violate the spirit of the 2015 deal, and has denounced Tehran as a destabilizing force.
It has slammed Tehran's "material and financial support" for "terrorism and extremism," citing its backing of the Lebanese “Hezbollah” party.
