Two Israeli senior ministers threatened to stop the Russian S-300 missile batteries if they intercept Israeli fighter jets.
"Israel is capable of destroying these missiles and will not hesitate to do so if its security is threatened," said Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan.
"The S-300s have not yet been prepared in Syria, but if Syrians or Iranians decide to use them against us, they risk destroying them entirely," said Erdan, who was speaking at an internal meeting of police commanders.
Environmental Protection Minister Ze’ev Elkin, who is also co-chair of the Russia-Israel Intergovernmental Commission, for his part, threatened to destroy Syria’s S-300 air defense systems if an Israeli Air Force jet is destroyed during a mission.
“The Syrian military are not always capable of correctly using the hardware transferred to them. In case of improper operation, civilian aircraft may be harmed,” he said.
"The Syrians, if they ever want to, might use [these systems] to down an Israeli military or commercial plane over Israeli territory," he said, adding that "considering the mess that is going on in the Syrian Army, shipping S-300s might lead to destabilization of the situation."
Elkin, who failed last week to win the presidency of Jerusalem municipality, won only 20 percent of the votes.
He chose the Syrian issue to return to the headlines and said he was accompanying Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at every meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The S-300 systems have been shipped to Syria in response to an incident in which the Syrian military's older S-200 air defense systems shot down a Russian Il-20 military airplane while firing at four Israeli F-16 jets.
Israel no longer agrees to respond to attacks targeting its territory or aircraft through international protests, instead, it will use its capabilities to protect itself and immediate operational measures to quell attacks radically, Elkin stressed.
When asked whether the destruction would be carried out even if Russian soldiers were in the area, the Israeli minister replied: "We will bomb the systems by which Israeli land or aircraft will be fired. I hope there will not be Russian soldiers."
On the other hand, Netanyahu met Monday in Jerusalem with James F. Jeffrey, US Secretary's Special Representative for Syria Engagement.
The two discussed recent developments in Syria and joint efforts to battle Iranian aggression.
Netanyahu thanked Jeffrey for his efforts and congratulated US President Donald Trump upon the beginning of his government's sanctions against Iran's fuel exports.
