Israel threatens Syria after blasts

‘‘Whoever is responsible for using terror against us won’t sleep quietly,’’ Israeli Army chief Moshe Yaalon told a parliamentary committee. Israel’s threats heightened regional tensions by raising the spectre of another air raid like the one carried out deep inside Syria last October against a suspected Palestinian militant training camp.

Tuesday’s bombings aboard commuter buses in Beersheba dashed Israeli hopes that Hamas had lost the ability to strike inside the Jewish state.

‘‘Syria…continues to support and aid and provide assistance to terrorist organisations,’’ said Raanan Gissin, a senior Sharon adviser. ‘‘The last example is Hamas and this terrorist attack.’’

Yaalon said Israel must ‘‘deal with…those who support terrorism whether it be elements of the Palestinian Authority, elements from Hizbollah in Lebanon or terror command posts in Damascus with Syrian approval’’.

Syrian officials were not immediately available for comment. Israel accuses Syria of harbouring militant groups and using Lebanese Hizbollah guerrillas as surrogates against the Jewish state — accusations denied by Damascus.

A senior source said while Israel had no desire to stir up its northern border, it wanted to remind Syria its tolerance was wearing thin. In a statement from Beirut, Hamas denied any involvement by its leadership abroad in the bombings. Israel killed Hamas’s two leaders, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and Abdel Aziz Al-Rantissi, in Gaza missile strikes earlier this year, but sources said further high-level hits had been put on hold in recent months. —(Reuters)