The Joint Chiefs of Staff of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Millie, made an unannounced visit to Israel on Friday for talks on "Iran and regional security challenges," according to the Israeli army, which confirmed the reinforcement of its forces on its northern border.
On Friday, Milli arrived at the Nefatim airbase on his second visit to Israel since he took office.
And Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks with General Milli via closed-circuit video on the issue of Iran and security challenges in the region.
General Millie also met with Minister of Defense Benny Gantz, and Chief of the General Staff Aviv Kochavi.
The American official said that there are common interests of the US and Israeli armies to maintain stability in the region and prevent its destabilization by Iran and its followers, as he put it.
Challenges and threats
For his part, an IDF statement said that Milli discussed Iran's issue and regional security challenges with Israeli leaders, and received a briefing from the Israeli Military Intelligence Administration.
Gantz said in a statement that he stressed "the need to continue to pressure Iran and its proxies that threaten regional and global stability."
"We have no interest in escalation, but we will do everything necessary to protect Israeli citizens, by all means and in all circumstances," he added.
For its part, The Times of Israel newspaper reported today, Saturday, that the visit comes at a time of heightened tension with Iran and its allies in the Middle East.
Commentators have pointed to the potential importance of the visit, especially regarding the threat posed by Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah.
Explosions and tension
Early on Friday, a statement of the Israeli occupation army said that explosions resumed on the Syrian side of the border fence in the occupied Golan, and had damaged cars and a civilian building on the Israeli side.
The army added that it was investigating the incident, but it was not immediately clear if there was an attempt to attack Israeli sites from inside Syria.
Last Monday, five Iranian-backed militants were killed by an Israeli missile strike south of the Syrian capital, Damascus, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The Lebanese Hezbollah, which is allied with the Syrian regime, announced that one of its members was among the dead.
On Thursday, the Israeli army announced an initial reinforcement of its forces at the northern border, as Israeli media reported that the move was in response to Hezbollah's threats of revenge.
On Friday, he announced an additional reinforcement of these forces at the border, and the Israeli army said it had "raised its alert status against various possible actions of the enemy."
Without referring to Hezbollah, the statement said, "The IDF holds the Lebanese government responsible for all actions launched from Lebanon."