Israel Fires Warning Shot into Syria

[Dusty]

Syria may not be on the "Axis of Evil" list much longer...

http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=291326


The IDF fired a warning shot at the Syrian military on Sunday, after a Syrian shell landed in the Golan Heights for the second time in recent days.

Israel has not fired at Syria since the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

"In the midst of Syrian infighting, a mortar shell fired by the Syrian army struck near an outpost at Tel Hazeka," IDF spokesman Brig.-Gen. Yoav Mordechai said. The shell failed to cause injuries or damages.

"In light of the policy instituted by IDF Chief of Staff, Lt.-Gen. Benny Gantz, a warning round was fired back into Syria. We don't believe it caused injuries or damages," Mordechai added.

At the same time, Israel sent a warning message to the UN, saying that any further firing into Israel will result "in a real response," sources added.

Israel limited its return fire, since its policy is to only fire intensively in response to coming under major Syrian fire. "We didn't continue firing because this was one mortar we were responding to," the source said.

"We will not accept any firing into our territory," he added. "This was a signal to the Syrians, that we will not be so forgiving of everything that lands in a territory." The source stressed that as of now, Israel and Syria were not a in a conflict situation.

The IDF is currently on standby for a security deterioration on both the northern front and the border with Gaza.

I
Just hours earlier, Defense Minister Ehud Barak threatened that Israel would respond should stray Syrian ordnance continue to strike the Golan Heights, highlighting international concerns that the civil war in Syria could ignite a wider regional conflict.

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[Badger52]

"We didn't continue firing because this was one mortar we were responding to," the source said.And used a guided missile to answer to an errant mortar round.

Hmmm, sounds like: "We will put bigger stuff exactly where we intend, so corral your knuckleheads."

[Dusty]

And used a guided missile to answer to an errant mortar round.

Hmmm, sounds like: "We will put bigger stuff exactly where we intend, so corral your knuckleheads."

If Syria repeats the "mistake", Israel won't tolerate it; Israel's leaders are probably frustrated to the point of explosion already.

[Dusty]

http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=291470

For second day in a row, Israel responds to Syrian shell landing in Golan, this time hitting Syrian mortar launchers; previous warning shot was first direct engagement with Syrian military since 1973.
Photo: REUTERS/Baz Ratner

IDF tanks fired into Syria on Monday for the second time in as many days, after a Syrian mortar shell landed in the Golan Heights.

The events played out in a similar sequence to those on Sunday, when an errant Syrian shell elicited an Israeli warning shot at the Syrian military for the first time since the 1973 Yom Kippur War. On Monday, however, the IDF said it shot "at the source of the fire in Syria," and scored a "direct hit," taking out two mortar launchers.

The Syrian shell landed near an IDF outpost in Hazeka on the Golan. Army Radio reported that there were no injuries or damage from the shell, which hit as Israel suffered a barrage of missiles from Gaza, putting the IDF in the position of monitoring enemy fire along both the northern and southern borders.

After Sunday's mortar shell exploded, Israel sent a warning message to the UN, saying that any further firing into Israel will result “in a real response.”

On Sunday, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for restraint on behalf of Israel and Syria. Ban's office said “the Secretary-General is deeply concerned by the potential for escalation. He calls for the utmost restraint and urges Syria and Israel to uphold the Disengagement Agreement, respect their mutual obligations, and halt firing of any kind across the ceasefire line.”

The IDF limited its return fire to a single missile, since its policy is to only fire intensively in response to coming under major Syrian fire.

Syria has been in the midst of a brutal civil war for over a year, and the IDF has been instructed to prevent the battles from spilling over into our territory.

At Sunday’s cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said that Israel was closely following events along the Syrian border, and was prepared for all possibilities on that front.

Sunday’s scuffle came a week after three Syrian tanks entered the demilitarized zone on the Golan Heights on Saturday afternoon, and remained there for several hours into the evening.

The tanks, which were involved in heavy clashes with Syrian rebels, encroached the decades-old cease-fire line Turkey has retaliated against errant mortar shells and violent spillover from Syrian infighting in recent weeks as well.

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[SFOC0173]

http://www.debka.com/article/22583/US-Israel-Turkey-Jordan-primed-to-strike-if-Assad-activates-chemical-weapons

[mark46th]

Obama let Ambassador Stevens die, why would he care about Syrian civilians?