IAF bombs Syrian target for fourth time in a week

Israel has made it a point to stay out of the Syrian civil war, but maintains the right to respond to any fire and shelling that crosses the border and threatens its citizens.

Israel’s Air Force (IAF) carried out an airstrike against a Syrian military position in the Golan Heights on Monday night in response to a mortar round fired from Syria into Israel earlier in the day.

The mortar round exploded in an open space, causing no casualties or damage.

The IDF said the target it attacked was an Assad army artillery position.

Reports surfaced of IAF fighter jets being targeted by SAM missiles and Syria claimed to have shot down an IAF jet and drone.

The IDF admitted that missiles were fired at its jets, but denied any of its aircraft were shot down.

“The IDF views the Syrian regime as responsible for all events occurring in its territory, and will not tolerate any harming of Israel’s sovereignty and the security of its citizens,” an IDF spokesman stated.

Eli Malka, head of the Golan Regional Council said, “There is no difference between spillover fire and intentional fire, a bomb is a bomb and poses a risk to human life. It is the responsibility of the Minister of Defense and the IDF to convey a clear message to all parties on the other side of the border that all shots fired in the Golan will be treated as firing on Israel and the IDF will respond by destructing the source of the fire.”

In the past weeks there have been a growing number of incidents of fire spilling over from the Syrian civil war into Israeli territory. This was the fourth such incident in the past week.

Opposing factions in Syria’s civil war have been battling heavily in the Kuneitra area adjacent to Israel’s northern border, and Hezbollah and Iranian forces have reportedly joined in the foray.

While Israel has refrained from intervening in the Syrian conflict, the IDF has responded to stray fire from Syria with artillery shelling or an air strike against Syrian army or rebel positions, in most cases targeting the source of fire.

By: Aryeh Savir, World Israel News

Golan HeightsIAFStray fireSyriaSyrian Civil War