Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened to strike a "crushing blow" for Hezbollah and Lebanon if Hezbollah makes a "fool" and attacks Israel.
"We heard over the weekend that Nasrallah was bragging about his plans for an attack," Netanyahu said at the weekly cabinet meeting.
"Let us be clear; if Hezbollah dared and made a mistake by attacking Israel, we would pay a devastating military strike."
Netanyahu explained that he would not separate Israel's military plans as Nasrallah did, and that Israel destroyed within days the tunnels the party had dug over the years.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said on Friday in an interview with Al-Manar television that "Iran is capable of bombing Israel with ferocity and force." "If there is a war on Iran, who said Israel would be neutralized?" He asked.
Nasrallah stressed that all the installations, facilities, ministries, factories and airports in the area stretching from Netanya to Ashdod "are under the range of our missiles and we can fly them," pointing out that Hezbollah is able to reach "beyond Eilat."
In recent years, Israel has stepped up its bombing in Syria, saying it targets Syrian military positions, Iranian and Hezbollah targets. It reiterates that it will continue to counter what it calls Iran's attempts to consolidate its military presence in Syria and send sophisticated weapons to Hezbollah.