Tensions high as Israel downs Syrian jet
Israel is on "high alert" after a Syrian fighter jet entered Israeli air space on July 24 and two Syrian missiles hurtled towards Israel the day before.
ISRAEL is on “high alert” after a Syrian fighter jet entered Israeli air space on July 24 and two Syrian missiles hurtled towards Israel the day before.
The increase in spillover from the Syrian Civil War in to northern Israel comes as the situation is also tense on the Gaza border in the south. There, a soldier was killed last Friday as a result of Palestinian sniper fire.
The soldier’s death, the first on the border in four years, was followed by an escalation on the border, which saw Israel striking dozens of Hamas targets and teetering on the edge of war, before an informal ceasefire was reached.
The Israeli government has been stressing this week that it doesn’t want war, but will act strongly if Hamas doesn’t deliver calm.
“The ball is now in the hands of Hamas who is responsible for whatever happens from now on,” said Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman. The ceasefire stopped rockets and mortars, but has not yet met Israel’s demand of halting arson kites.
On the Syria front, the IDF announced that the Syrian plane reached two kilometres inside Israeli airspace, and “it was then intercepted by Patriot missiles”.
The incident with the jet was a major breach of understandings between Israel and Syria – understandings which Jerusalem hopes are being policed by Russia.
“This is a gross violation of the 1974 Separation of Forces Agreement with Syria,” said Netanyahu. “I have reiterated and made clear that we will not accept any such violation.
“We will not accept any such penetration of, or spillover into, our territory, neither on the ground nor in the air. Our forces acted appropriately. We insist that the Syrians strictly abide by the Separation of Forces Agreement between us and them.”
The incidents, together with the urgent need for White Helmet humanitarian workers to be evacuated from Syria, constituted a stark reminder for Israelis that the fighting of the nearby civil war is getting closer to their border, as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad retakes the south of his country.
The Syrian fighting is expected to get even closer to Israel over the coming days, potentially causing more spillover at the border. But it’s unclear whether the Gaza situation will intensify or become calmer.
Israel is hoping that incentives for the Gaza regime will keep the ceasefire in place. On Tuesday it partially reopened the main goods crossing, which had been closed, and is expected to agree to a full reopening if kite arson attacks stop.
Amid the politics, military action and diplomacy, in Petah Tikva a family mourned for its son. Aviv Levi, the soldier killed by sniper fire on the Gaza border, was 20 years old, and coming towards the end of his military service.
Levi’s mother Perla had tried calling him shortly after he was killed, couldn’t get through, and soon afterwards heard the news from the military.
His commander eulogised him at the funeral as “a courageous fighter”, and his father Yaakov said he was “a crown on our heads”.
NATHAN JEFFAY
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