1st LD: Israeli strike kills 5 Syrian civilians in Qunaitera province

An Israeli drone targeted a car in the southern province of Qunaitera Friday, killing five civilians, the latest in a series of Israeli strikes that have targeted several Syrian positions since Thursday evening, the state-run TV reported.

"On Friday morning, an Israeli drone struck a civilian Peugeot car in the town of Kom in Qunaitera, killing its five occupants who were civilians from the sons of Qunaitera," the state TV said.

Friday's attack came just hours after the Israeli forces fired several rockets and shells against several Syrian sites in Qunaitera, which borders the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Since Thursday night, the Israeli rocket fire targeted the fire and transportation departments in Quanitera, leaving only property losses. Other strikes also targeted some military positions to help the "terrorist groups" in that area, the TV said.

The state news agency SANA said an Israeli attack on Thursday night targeted a military post in Qunaitera, killing one and injuring another seven.

The Syrian military general command said the Israeli strikes came to aid the "collapsed terrorist groups" in that part of the country.

The Syrian army and government have always accused Israel of working to help the radical groups in southern Syria to create a buffer zone that could protect Israeli-held territories from the spillover of the Syrian crisis.

Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Friday it targeted and hit a cell in Syria that the army believes is responsible for a rockets attack on northern Israeli Thursday afternoon.

"The Israel Defense Forces targeted 14 Syrian military posts in the Syrian Golan Heights," a statement by the IDF spokesperson unit said early Friday.

"We targeted a vehicle early this morning," a military source was quoted by the Ynet news website as saying, adding that "the vehicle was attacked 10-15 kilometers off the Israeli-Syrian border."

Israeli media also reported that two military Syrian officials close to Syrian President Bashar Assad had been killed in one of the Israeli strikes late Thursday and early Friday. Among others, the IDF hit eight Syrian military posts late Thursday, it said in a statement.

Also on Friday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement in which he reiterated that "those who try to hurt Israel, we will hurt him," adding that the IDF hit the squad that fired the rockets.

"We have no intention of escalating events, but our policy stands. The countries that embrace Iran should know that an Iranian commander gave sponsorship and direction to the squad that fired at Israel," Netanyahu said on Friday in a statement sent by his office.

On Thursday, the Israeli military said the Islamic Jihad is behind the rockets attack, sponsored by Iran with the approval of the Syrian government. Furthermore, Israel said it holds Syria responsible as the attack emanated from its turf.

Israeli officials recently warned of an increasing threat on Israel's northern borders amid what they said is a growing Iranian involvement with militant activity against Israel in the region. Endit