The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stopped all military leave because threats from Iran are increasing after an alleged Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria this week. The attack killed two top generals.
The IDF said Thursday in a statement that it was stopping soldiers from taking time off for all combat units based on the situation.
“The IDF is at war and the deployment of forces is continuously being evaluated according to needs,” the military said on Telegram.
The decision will keep forces on deployment and duty as Israel is on increased alert following the alleged Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate near Tehran’s embassy in Damascus.
The Monday attack killed a senior commander with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force who was a high-ranking official for the Iranian military in Lebanon and Syria. It also killed another high-ranking general and five other officers.
Iran has swore to get back at Israel for the attack, which was the most significant loss for Tehran since Israel started fighting against the Iranian-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza in October.
“They will also be punished for these acts,” said Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, based on the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency, in a speech this week.
It’s not clear how Iran will retaliate, but experts have long warned that the nation does not want a full-scale war with the U.S. or Israel.
But Tehran could retaliate through attacks by its allies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, a group that has been fighting against the Israeli military in northern Israel since the Gaza war started. Those attacks have mostly been limited to border shelling.
On Wednesday, the IDF said in a statement that after evaluating the situation, it was increasing manpower and calling up reserve soldiers for aerial defenses.
