Israel, Syria Spar Over Golan Heights, Israeli Warplane Reportedly Shot Down Amid Ceasefire

Israel and Syria are once again engaging in hostilities in the Golan Heights. The Golan Heights is a region that has been hotly disputed by both countries for years, dating back to the annexation of that province from Syria by Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War. The two countries have been in a state of conflict since that time, with varying degrees of hostility.

In the current round of hostilities, Syrian forces loyal to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad claim that they have shot down two Israeli aircraft over the Golan Heights, ABC News reports. A statement made by Syrian military officials was circulated by state news agencies within Syria, saying that an Israeli warplane (likely a bomber or fighter) and an automated drone device were shot down. The incident is said to have occurred around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday local time (6:30 p.m. Monday Eastern Standard Time).

Israel quickly denied the claims, according to CNN, with Israeli Defense Force spokesman Peter Lerner issuing a statement.

“Overnight two surface-to-air missiles were launched from Syria after the mission overnight to target Syrian artillery positions. At no point was the safety of IDF aircraft compromised.”

Lerner went on to call the Syrian military claims “completely false” and “total lies.”

Israel has been conducting bombing raids into Syria after an artillery shell landed in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. Indeed, the Times of Israel reports that five separate shells have landed in the Golan Heights in just over a week, apparently stray fire from artillery positions within Syria as the forces of Bashar al-Assad battle rebel groups in the ongoing Syrian Civil War. The Israeli military has stated that they hold the Assad regime responsible for any attack or stray fire coming from Syrian territory, regardless of its actual source. The air raid is not an uncommon response from Israel, as the IDF regularly responds to any perceived attack on Israeli sovereignty, including in the Golan Heights.

Below is a video that highlights an Israeli response to a similar incident that occurred in the area last year.

https://rumble.com/embed/vbf63/

The incident comes just hours after a cease-fire was implemented in Syria in an attempt to cool the conflict in the region. The cease-fire, negotiated by the United States and Russia, is supposed to last 48 hours and give aid groups an opportunity to provide relief to displaced civilians and refugees. BBC News reports that the ceasefire is largely holding, despite reports of air raids and shelling in the Hama province and around Damascus. The United Nations has said that it needs further assurances of peace in the area to provide aid to the approximately 250,000 civilians trapped in the embattled city of Aleppo, Syria.

The incident in the Golan Heights, however, does not provide much confidence for the staying power of the ceasefire conditions and highlights the fragile nature of the tenuous deal reached between the United States, Russia, Assad’s Syrian regime, and other militants within Syria. Syria’s ongoing conflict has lasted five years thus far, and has left some 300,000 people dead and many more displaced.

The conflict between Israel and Syria in the Golan Heights dates back to the Six-Day War in 1967. Fought between June 5 and June 10 of that year, the war began with a devastating attack on Egypt by Israel in response to Egyptian military buildup. In turn, Jordan and Syria launched attacks on Israel. The resulting IDF counterattack left Israel in possession of the West Bank, from Jordan, and the Golan Heights, from Syria. A ceasefire was signed on June 11, 1967, and Israel has retained control of those territories ever since.

The Golan Heights has been a focal point of military tension between Israel and Syria for decades. It remains to be seen how this incident will affect the larger conflict within embattled Syria, as the Assad regime struggles to stay in power and Israel struggles to keep the war on the far side of the Golan Heights border region.

[Photo by Ariel Schalit/AP Images]