Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said his country will respond to any Israeli attack on its soil.

In an interview to be aired on Thursday by Al-Manar TV station, owned by the Shia Hezbollah group in neighbouring Lebanon, Assad also said he had already received the first shipment of an advanced Russian air defence system and would soon get the rest of the S-300 missile system.
The comments were first published on Thursday by the Lebanese newspaper al-Akhbar  which got excerpts of the interview.

"Syria has received the first shipment of Russian anti-aircraft S-300 rockets," al-Akhbar  quoted Assad as saying. "The rest of the shipment will arrive soon."

Israel has suggested its military might strike the Russian S-300 missiles.

Meanwhile, Syrian opposition members meeting in the Turkish city of Istanbul have set preconditions on entering international peace talks scheduled for next month in Geneva.
George Sabra, head of the Syrian National Coalition (SNC), said it would not take part in talks while key allies of Assad's regime were waging war alongside government forces.