Report: Barak warns Syria IDF planning Hezbollah op

Defense Minister Ehud Barak has warned Syria through Turkish mediation that the Israel Defense Forces is planning to escalate its military operations against Hezbollah and Hamas, the London-based daily Al-Hayyat reported on Thursday.

On his visit to Turkey last week, Barak asked Turkish President Abdullah Ghoul to urge Syrian President Bashar Assad to adopt a different stance toward Hezbollah, according to Al-Hayyat.

The defense minister reportedly informed Turkey of Israel's intentions to widen its operation in Gaza and asked the Turkish leader to consider sending troops on an international mission to Gaza geared toward ending Qassam rocket fire and protecting the border.

This multi-national force will comprise representatives from Qatar, Malaysia and Jordan, according to the report.

The Defense Ministry has refused to respond to the report, which it said was the result of leaked information.

Barak said Tuesday that he anticipated Hezbollah would try to retaliate for last week's assassination of terrorist mastermind Imad Mughniyah, possibly with help from Syria and Iran.

Hezbollah blamed Israel for the attack and pledged to attack Jewish targets worldwide in revenge.

The U.S. intelligence chief has said, however, that internal Hezbollah factions or Syria may be to blame for Mughniyah's death. More