*ISRAEL WARNS REGION*

ISRAEL has gone public on 2007 destruction of suspected Syrian reactor, now warns the region.

Israel for the first time confirmed that it bombed a suspected Syrian nuclear reactor in 2007, saying on Wednesday that the strike removed-

A major threat to Israel and the region and was a ''message'' to all others.

The first public acknowledgement by Israel that its F-16 and F-15 warplanes carried out a the Sept 6, 2007 bombing of -

The partially constructed AI-Kubar facility near Deir aI-Zor was made after military censors lifted a  more than 10-year order that had barred Israeli officials from discussing it. 

The strike had already been extensively reported on abroad, and discussed by US officials. Israel however, kept quiet to avoid provoking Syrian reprisals and a possible regional war.

The Israeli military released newly declassified operational footage, photographs and intelligence documents about the bombing and detailing the intelligence operation that led up to it.

Israel concluded that the reactor had been under construction with North Korean help and and was months away from activation.

Reuters has been unable to immediately verify the Israeli material.

Israel's decision to go public comes after repeated calls in recent months by Prime Minister Banjamin Netanyahu for the United States and International community to take tougher action on Syria's ally : Iran.

''The motivation of our enemies has grown in recent years, but so too the might of the of the IDF -Israel Defence Forces,'' Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said last Wednesday.

[Agencies]