Israeli media reported Monday that Syria has acquired an array of advanced Russian-made anti-aircraft missiles as part of a military build-up ahead of a possible war with the Jewish state. Syria currently has “the densest anti-aircraft deployment in the world,” Israel’s mass’selling Yediot Aharonot daily quoted a military source as saying. “Syria has purchased from the Russians the world’s most advanced surface-to-air missiles. This is the last word in plane interception technology. According to one estimate, the Syrians hold about 200 anti-aircraft batteries of different models … in an attempt to provide a response to the absolute superiority of the Israeli air force,” it said.

Army radio has also reported that Syria has acquired advanced weapons, including chemical warheads for surface-to’surface missiles.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has nevertheless refused to order the distribution of gas masks to civilians, fearing such a step would further escalate the heightened tensions between Israel and its northern neighbor, the report said, quoting sources in the military intelligence.

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