Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will on Friday evening hold a rare security consultation by phone with senior defense officials, according to reports in Israeli media outlets.
Such consultations rarely take place during Shabbat, except when circumstances require it.
The reports indicated that the discussion will focus on the latest dramatic developments in Syria, where fighting continues between rebel forces and the army of President Bashar Al-Assad.
Additionally, the discussion will address the implementation of the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon, which came into effect on Wednesday.
Israeli officials quoted by Ynet commented on the developments in Syria, stating, "This is something we need to monitor closely to see where it leads."
They added, "This does not necessarily impact us, certainly not in the short term, but any destabilization of a neighboring country could also affect us. It seems that this situation may even present opportunities for change."
The discussion comes after Syrian rebels entered the city of Aleppo on Friday, three days after launching a surprise offensive against Assad’s troops, reported CNN.
The rebel forces have swept through several villages outside the city, reigniting the conflict that had been largely static for years.
An official Syrian military statement said the army was confronting a “major attack” and claimed it is “reinforcing all locations along the various battlefronts,” but multiple residents in the city claimed that regime forces have pulled back from several neighborhoods in the western part of Aleppo.
The rebels announced earlier they had seized control of the Syrian government’s Military Scientific Research Center on the outskirts of Aleppo city after “intense clashes with the regime forces and Iranian militias.”
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)