Israeli air force chief warned that a “surprise war” would break out in Syria as tensions are escalating there, saying that the Zionist entity should be prepared for painful and protracted war with Hezbollah and Iran.

Israeli air force chief warned that a “surprise war” would break out in Syria as tensions are escalating there, saying that the Zionist entity should be prepared for painful and protracted war with Hezbollah and Iran.

"A surprise war could take shape today in many configurations," Maj. Gen. Amir Eshel said at a strategy conference in Herzliya, near Tel Aviv.

Eshel also said Israelis should brace for a protracted and painful conflict should their forces engage in combat with Hezbollah or Iran.

"If Syria collapses tomorrow, we will need to take action to prevent a strategic looting of advanced weaponry," he told the Fisher Institute for Air & Space Studies.

"We have to be ready for any scenario, at a few hours' notice," Eshel said.
He assumed fighting could escalate on to three fronts at once and require the Israeli air force to employ "the full spectrum of its might".

He noted that Russian S-300 air defense systems were "on their way" to Syria, though Israel asked Russia not to supply the advanced air defense system to Syria.

Tel Aviv has been warily watching the current crisis taking place in Syria since March 2011. It has already carried out three air strikes on Syria.

On May 5, Syria said the Israeli regime had carried out an airstrike targeting aresearch center in a suburb of Damascus, following heavy losses inflicted upon al-Qaeda-affiliated groups by the Syrian army. According to Syrian media reports, the strike hit the Jamraya Research Center. The Jamraya facility had been targeted in another Israeli airstrike in January.

The May 5 Israeli aggression was Tel Aviv’s second strike on Syria in three days.