IAF attempts to down Syrian UAV

Syria’s civil war occasionally spills over into Israel, but the entrance of a drone into Israel’s airspace constitutes a different level of danger and Israel immediately reacted by attempting to shoot it down, but the drone managed to escape.

Israel’s Air Force (IAF) fired two patriot missiles and an air-to-air rocket at an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) flying from Syria that invaded Israeli air space over the Golan Heights on Sunday.

The projectiles missed their mark and the UAV flew back to Syria unhindered.

Sirens went off in the central Golan to warn the residents of the incident.

The missile fragments fell over northern Israel, and a teenage hiker was lightly wounded from one of the fragments. She was treated in a hospital for a light injury she sustained to her knee.

The fragments also ignited a fire in the Ayelet HaShachar area, which was extinguished by firefighters.

The IDF launched an investigation into who flew the drone into Israel and whether the aircraft belonged to the Syrian army, rebel forces or the Hezbollah terror organization.

The army is also reportedly checking a possibility that the UAV was Russian, and is discussing this with the Russian army.

The IAF is also investigating why the interceptors missed their target.

An initial probe reveals that the IAF identified and tracked the drone long before it entered Israeli airspace.

Israel has shot down Syrian aircraft in the past. In August 2014, it shot down a Syrian drone and in September of that year a Syrian fighter jet that had entered its airspace.

Israel has avoided intervening in the Syrian civil war, though it has responded to occasional mortar fire that landed in the Golan, a spillover from the heavy fighting in the area.

By: Aryeh Savir, World Israel News

Golan HeightsIAFPatriot missileSyriaSyrian Civil WarUAV