Syria’s Foreign Ministry said Thursday that Israel’s large scale attack on Iranian military infrastructure in Syria overnight between Wednesday and Thursday was only the latest move of a long-standing “plot” and alleging that “Israel’s open and direct involvement, following years of acting in secret by supporting terrorist organizations, signals the beginning of a new stage in the confrontation and aggression against Syria.

However, Israel’s European allies and even some quarters of the Arab world expressed their support for Israel’s right to defend itself against Iranian aggression Thursday, appearing to place the blame on Iran for the exchange of fire that began with 20 salvos fired at Israel by the Iranian army’s elite Quds Force around midnight and ended with a large scale operation by IAF jets later in the night.

“As long as Iran continues to violate the current status quo with its forces and rockets operating in the region, any country, including Israel, has the right to defend itself by eliminating the source of danger,” Tweeted Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa following Wednesday night’s exchange over the Golan Heights and Syria.

British Prime Minister Theresa May, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and White House Spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders also condemned Iran for attacking Israel, with Merkel and Sanders calling Iranian missile salvos at the Golan Heights a “provocation.”

“We condemn Iran’s attack on Israel. Israel has every right to defend itself. We call on Iran to refrain from any further attacks and for calm on all sides. We call on Russia to use its influence in Syria to prevent further Iranian attacks,” said May.

“We note reports of Iranian rocket attacks on Israeli military bases with great concern,” a spokesperson for Germany’s Foreign Ministry added. “These attacks are a serious provocation that we strongly condemn. As we have always emphasized, Israel has a right to self-defense.

“At the same time, it is crucial that there is no further escalation,” the spokesperson continued. “In particular, this means that we must do everything we can to finally achieve a lasting political solution to the Syrian conflict — to end the suffering of the Syrian people, but also so as not to jeopardize stability in the entire region.“

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, meanwhile, called the exchange of fire a “very disturbing trend” and called for dialogue between Israel and Iran.

“We begin with the fact that all issues should be solved through dialogue,” Lavrov said at a press conference, adding that Moscow had warned Israel to avoid “all actions that could be seen as provocative.”