Tensions Increasing In Golan Heights: IDF Patrol Under Fire

The Golan Heights are most definitely heating up and this is yet another evolving story to keep an eye on:

IDF Patrol Comes Under Fire On Golan Heights

An army force on a routine patrol of the border with Syria on the Golan Heights came under fire and shot back at a group of unidentified suspects on the frontier.

There were no injuries among IDF soldiers in the incident.

IDF soldiers identified a group of suspects who had entered an unmanned military post along the Syrian-Israeli border.

The suspects did not cross the border fence, but were in Israeli territory when they attacked the IDF, an army spokeswoman said. The results of the return fire are not known at this stage.

The army has launched a search of the area.

The IDF has been placed on higher alert in light of the escalation in the Syrian civil war. Earlier on Tuesday, several stray mortar shells fired amid intense battles between the Syrian army and rebels exploded in Israeli territory on the northern Golan Heights.

Israeli residents reported hearing blasts throughout the day, though the IDF did not issue locals special safety instructions or reduce civilian movements on the Golan Heights.

Syrian Gunmen Infiltrate Unmanned IDF Post In Southern Golan; Israel Patrol Shot At

Two Syrian gunmen, of unknown affiliation, infiltrated an unmanned IDF military outpost in the southern Golan Heights in the demilitarized zone Tuesday night. Shots were then fired at an IDF patrol approaching the area.

It was still unclear where the shots came from, with some reports indicating they came from Syria, where Assad forces were possibly targeting the gunmen, believed to be rebels.

“Earlier this evening, suspicious movement was spotted in an unmanned IDF position, east of the fence, in the southern Golan Heights. Shots were fired at the patrol which returned fire,” the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit told the Times of Israel.

The IDF reported that it had filed a complaint with the UN peacekeeping forces in the Golan and requested that they bring an end to the cross-border shelling.

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said Tuesday that Israel will not hesitate to respond to fire with fire. “Once attacks from Syria endanger us or violate our sovereignty — we will identify the source of fire and destroy it,” Ya’alon said.

“We have set up red lines to protect our interests,” he added.

In the past, Israel has shot missiles at Syrian army positions in response to other incidents of errant mortar fire.

“Israel has thus far shown maximum restraint and issued numerous warnings through UNDOF. However, the Israeli government will not allow its citizens to be the ongoing victims of these attacks and will continue to exercise its right to self-defense, as appropriate, and take all necessary measures to protect its population,” wrote Prosor.

He warned that these violations threaten to further destabilize the entire region.