Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad says the country’s air defense systems are fully prepared to give a firm response to any possible act of aggression, stressing that the decision to confront any aggressive move is long-standing. He added, “We have always stated that we are dealing with any Israeli attack according to our own agenda, and not other ones.” Mekdad then pointed to the Damascus government’s alliance with Russia, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement. The Syrian deputy foreign minister pointed out that Israel must come with the terms that Damascus is fiercely determined to emerge victorious, and that it is gaining major achievements in the fight against terrorism and Israel’s expansionist policies on a daily basis.On Saturday, Syria’s state television, citing an unnamed Syrian military official, reported that the country’s air defense systems had struck at least one intruding Israeli F-16 fighter aircraft. The official added that the aircraft had targeted a Syrian army base in the central region of the country. A pro-government military alliance in Syria said in a statement that Israel would see a severe and serious response to its “terrorism” from now on.