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Israeli war jets strike Syrian army post in reprisal against errant fire

Xinhua, August 23, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Israeli Air Force struck a Syrian army post following errant mortar fire from Syria into the Israeli-held Golan Heights, the Israeli army said on Monday.

"Earlier today fire from Syria hit an open area near the security fence in the central Golan Heights," a statement by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) read on Monday. No injuries were reported.

The Israeli army said that the Israeli Air Force in response "targeted a launcher of the Syrian Army" in the central Syrian Golan Heights, stating that Israel holds the Syrian regime responsible for such incidents.

An Israeli military source told Xinhua that the IDF believes the mortar that hit the Israeli-held Golan Heights was a result of the fighting between Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces and the rebels in southern Syria.

Israel had occupied the southern Golan Heights in 1967 and annexed it in 1981.

On July 25, the Israeli Air Force struck Syria after a Syrian mortar landed in the Israeli-held Golan Heights, also blaming the Syrian government for "all fire from Syria."

Errant fire from the fighting in Syria has occasionally spilled over to Israel in the past five years of the Syrian Civil War, usually not causing any damages or injuries.

Israeli officials had repeatedly stated in recent years the country would not intervene with the internal fighting in Syria. It did, however, deliver medical treatment to thousands of wounded Syrians who reached the Israeli-Syrian border.

Israel has also been responsible for several airstrikes in Syria in the past several years, allegedly targeting convoys carrying weapons from Iran and Syria to the Lebanese Hezbollah militant organization, a staunch enemy of Israel.

The country remained silent on these attacks, reported by international media outlets, until three months ago, when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted that Israel carried out "dozens" of strikes across the Israeli-Syrian border. Endit