TEL AVIV, January 28 (RIA Novosti) - Israel's Security Council head Yaakov Amidror headed to Russia on Monday, a source in the Israeli prime minister’s administration told RIA Novosti.
The visit coincided with Israel's growing concern that Syrian chemical weapons may fall into the hands of radical Islamist groups.
Though Israeli media said it was an “emergency visit,” the source told RIA Novosti it was a working trip that came as part of regular consultations between the two states’ security councils.
The source did not comment on the agenda of the talks, saying only that Amidror plans to meet with Nikolai Patrushev, the head of the Security Council of Russia, and possibly with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
The Maariv daily said Amidror is set to raise the issue of Syria’s chemical weapons safety during his visit.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday expressed his concerns about the weapons of mass destruction in Syria, with the country "increasingly coming apart” as a result of the 22-month-long civil conflict, the Associated Press reported.
The Jerusalem Post quoted Vice Premier Silvan Shalom as saying later that day that should Hezbollah or the rebels battling forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad obtain Syrian chemical weapons, it would become "a crossing of all red lines that would require a different approach, including preventive measures."
