Iran says Israel will 'regret' further attacks on Syria

By Ahmet Dursun

ANKARA

Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Thursday said that Israel would "regret" if it continued attacks in Syria, according to Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency.

Shamkhani met Nikolai Patrushev, secretary-general of the Russian Federation's Security Council, in the Iranian capital Tehran. The two reacted to the unilateral approach the U.S. pursues in the region.

During the meeting, Shamkhani accused Israel of supporting terrorism in Syria.

"The Zionist regime wants to maintain the instability in Syria, however, it will encounter reactions that will cause regret should it continue the strikes in Syria," he expressed.

Russian Security Council Secretary Patrushev stated that the U.S. used terror as an instrument to achieve its goals in the region, which therefore rendered regional cooperation inevitable.

Patrushev said the U.S. pursued initiatives that would increase the instability in Syria despite joint efforts by Turkey, Russia and Iran to find a solution for the war-torn country.

*Ali Murat Alhas contributed to this report from Ankara