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Israel attacks Syrian army sites in Golan Heights clash Israel attacks Syrian army sites after Golan bombing
(about 1 hour later)
Israel says it has attacked several Syrian military sites in retaliation for a bombing that wounded four of its troops in the occupied Golan Heights.Israel says it has attacked several Syrian military sites in retaliation for a bombing that wounded four of its troops in the occupied Golan Heights.
Israel's military said its targets included a Syrian army headquarters, a training facility and artillery units. Among the targets were a headquarters, a training facility and artillery batteries, the Israeli military said.
It comes after four Israeli soldiers were hurt in an explosion on Tuesday. The Syrian army had "aided and abetted" the attack on a patrol near the ceasefire line on Tuesday, it added.
Syrian and Israeli forces have traded fire a number of times over the ceasefire line in the Golan Heights since the uprising in Syria began. There has been no comment yet on the air strikes from Syria and it is not clear if there were any casualties.
Israeli warplanes carried out air strikes on the Syrian facilities overnight, a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said. He described the targets as on the Syrian-held side of the Golan Heights. The Israeli air force has conducted several aerial attacks on Syria since the uprising began three years ago.
"A short while ago the IDF targeted several Syrian army positions which aided and abetted the attack against IDF personnel yesterday," the army said in a statement early on Wednesday. Those air strikes are believed to have prevented the transfer of stockpiles of rockets from the Syrian government to Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shia Islamist movement that supports President Bashar al-Assad.
'Escalation of violence' These latest operations though were direct acts of retaliation, reports the BBC's Kevin Connolly in Jerusalem.
The choice of targets demonstrates that Israel is clearly blaming Syrian government forces, and not rebel fighters or units of Hezbollah for the attack on its patrol, our correspondent says.
Israel has used artillery against Syrian targets on the Golan to respond in previous incidents, but its use of military aircraft on this occasion raises the incident to a more significant level, he adds.
At the start of a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that his country would act "forcefully" to defend itself against any attack.
"Our policy is very clear: we hurt those who hurt us," he said.
'Unacceptable escalation'
The Golan Heights, a rocky plateau in south-western Syria, has a political and strategic significance that belies its size.The Golan Heights, a rocky plateau in south-western Syria, has a political and strategic significance that belies its size.
Israel seized the region from Syria in the closing stages of the 1967 Middle East War, and thwarted a Syrian attempt to retake it in 1973.Israel seized the region from Syria in the closing stages of the 1967 Middle East War, and thwarted a Syrian attempt to retake it in 1973.
The two countries remain technically in a state of war, and UN observers are deployed to monitor a 70km-long (44-mile) demilitarised zone.The two countries remain technically in a state of war, and UN observers are deployed to monitor a 70km-long (44-mile) demilitarised zone.
Since the uprising began in Syria three years ago, both government forces and rebel fighters have repeatedly crossed into the buffer zone. On Tuesday, the four Israeli soldiers were wounded, one of them seriously, when an explosive device was detonated as they approached the fence demarcating the demilitarised zone.
On Tuesday, Israel said four of its soldiers were injured as they approached the demilitarized zone after identifying "suspicious activity". Israeli military spokesman Lt Col Peter Lerner said the attack was an "unacceptable escalation of violence from Syria".
IDF spokesman Lt Col Peter Lerner described the blast as "an unacceptable escalation of violence from Syria". "We will not tolerate this threat against Israeli civilians or troops," he added. "We will fulfil our mission, prevent, protect and defend against hostilities from Syria."
"We will not tolerate this threat against Israeli civilians or troops."
There was no immediate response from the Syrian government.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the border with Syria had been recently "filling up" with jihadist fighters hostile to Israel and militants from the Lebanese Shia Islamist movement, Hezbollah.
Two weeks ago, Israeli troops shot two "Hezbollah-affiliated terrorists" attempting to plant an explosive device near the fence demarcating the demilitarised zone, the Israeli military said.Two weeks ago, Israeli troops shot two "Hezbollah-affiliated terrorists" attempting to plant an explosive device near the fence demarcating the demilitarised zone, the Israeli military said.
And on Friday, an explosive device was detonated near soldiers patrolling the nearby border with Lebanon. No casualties were reported after the incident in the Mount Dov area, which Israel blamed on Hezbollah.