Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that Israel's airstrikes on dozens of Iranian targets in Syria were "appropriate" because the Islamic republic had "crossed a red line."
In a brief video address, Netanyahu said, "Iran crossed a red line. We responded accordingly. The IDF carried out a very wide-ranging attack against Iranian targets in Syria.
"Thanks to a correct deployment of our forces both offensively and defensively, the Iranian action failed. No rocket landed in Israeli territory and our policy is clear: We will not allow Iran to establish a military presence in Syria.
"I delivered a clear message to the Assad regime: Our action is directed against Iranian targets in Syria; however, if the Syrian military acts against us, we will act against it. This is exactly what happened – Syrian military batteries fired surface-to-air missiles against us and, therefore, we attacked them," Netanyahu said.
"The international community needs to prevent the Iranian Quds Force from establishing itself in Syria. We need to unite in order to cut off its spreading tentacles of evil there and everywhere.
"I repeat: Whoever hurts us – we will hurt them sevenfold, and whoever is preparing to hurt us – we will act to hit them first. This is what we have done and this is what we will continue to do," the prime minister said.
Israeli politicians lauded the successful Israeli strike on Iran's assets in Syria.
Habayit Hayehudi leader Education Minister Naftali Bennett met with foreign diplomats and said, "We are not going to make the same mistakes we did in Lebanon. We are ready to take on a low-intensity conflict in the present to prevent a far more substantial threat in the future."
Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz explained that "the only way to prevent violence and war tomorrow is to strike [Iranian assets in Syria] today. We are defending our soldiers and our citizens, and we are sparing no effort to detect and prevent [threats]."
Construction Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel "will not allow the establishment of another front on the Golan Heights. We are ready for any development and we will cut off this [Iranian] arm. If we don't act now to prevent Iranian entrenchment in Syria there will be a heavy price to pay. We will put the Iranian genie back in the bottle."
Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Danny Danon called on the Security Council to condemn the Iranian aggression against Israel.
"Israel will continue to defend its citizens against any act of aggression. We have no interest in a security escalation, but under no circumstances will we allow an Iranian military establishment in Syria with the sole purpose of attacking Israel and deteriorating the fragile situation in our region," he said.
Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan said, "We sent Iran and the Assad regime a message of determination and strength. Israel will not hesitate to act against the Iranian forces in Syria and it will show no leniency in the face of any attempt to attack the residents of northern Israel."
Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein echoed the sentiment, saying "Israel delivered a clear message to Iran and its other enemies: The rules of the game have changed. We will not tolerate the establishment of hostile Iranian forces within a short distance from our border communities."
The opposition also lauded Thursday's operation.
"When the government acts appropriately, like in the case of the strike against the Iranian forces in Syria, I will support it regardless of politics. When the prime minister is wrong, I will be the first to call him out on it," Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid said.
Zionist Union leader Avi Gabbay noted that "the concept by which the defense establishment operates is accurate and correct. Israel must protect its borders."
