Syria’s ambassador to Lebanon has reserved for Damascus the ability to launch a “surprise retaliation” against Israel, a day after reports emerged of multiple Israeli Air Force operations designed to bolster Israel’s “red line” against the transfer of Syria’s nonconventional arsenal. Reports first emerged early Wednesday that Jerusalem had struck a convoy of advanced Syrian weapons bound for Hezbollah as, or immediately after, the convoy entered Lebanon. Analysts speculated that Israel sought to intercept the shipment because it contained advanced SA-17 anti-aircraft weapons, which installed by Hezbollah would dramatically undercut Israel’s ability to block future shipments, including shipments of chemical and biological weapons. Later in the day state-controlled Syrian media outlets reported that Israeli jets had struck a compound rumored to be linked to Syria’s nonconventional weapons program. Yesterday afternoon The Israel Project released a cluster of multimedia resources unpacking the history and emphasis of the Israeli “red line,” which Israeli officials laid out as early as summer 2012.

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