Israel has warned the Islamic Republic against sending arms to Syria under the guise of humanitarian aid meant for the earthquake hit people of the country. 

The Saudi-owned Elaph news site quoted an unnamed Israeli military official as saying any move by Tehran to send weapons to Syria will be met with military response by the IDF "without hesitation.” 

“There is information indicating that Iran will take advantage of the tragic situation in Syria” and ship weapons to the Hezbollah terror organization and other Iran-backed groups in Syria, the source said, adding that Israel would not accept this and it would result in a “firm military response from us without hesitation.”

Several Iranian cargo planes reportedly carrying aid have landed in Syria since Monday’s major earthquake in southeast Turkey, that has killed more than 20,000 people in both countries as of Thursday evening.

Esmail Ghaani, who heads Iran’s Revolutionary Guard extraterritorial Quds Force, was seen in Aleppo on Wednesday to supervise Iranian rescue operations.

Several airstrikes against alleged Iranian weapons shipments disguised as seemingly harmless products have been attributed to Israel in recent years, including last month.

Israeli air strikes targeting Iran-linked assets in Syria focused on airports as the Islamic Republic is trying to step up its presence while Russia is entangled in Ukraine.

Israeli and American officials have reportedly made a deal to cooperate over covert and semi-covert operations inside Iran. 

Late in January, a drone attack hit a military factory in the central city of Esfahan. Blaming Israel, Tehran vowed revenge for the latest episode in a long-running covert war.