Rockets from Syria fell in the Galilee region last Thursday, and Israel responded to the intentional attack with a deadly strike against the Iranian-led Islamic Jihad terrorist cell that launched it. The exchange of fire threatens to rupture a 42-year cease-fire between Syria and Israel and ignite full-blown war.
Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war in 2011, fighting between the Assad regime’s forces and Syrian rebels has occasionally spilled over into Israeli territory. Errant sniper fire and missiles have hit Israel before, but usually these incidents are not intentional. However, the four rockets launched into Israel on Thursday openly targeted Israeli civilians. Prime Minister Netanyahu made it clear he holds both the Islamic Jihad terrorist group and the Syrian government responsible for endangering Israeli lives.
“I said this week that we would hurt whoever tries to attack us, and this is what we have done. The IDF hit both the cell that carried out the firing and the Syrian forces that made it possible. We have no intention to escalate events but our policy remains as it was. The countries that are rushing to embrace Iran should know that it was an Iranian commander who directed and supported the cell that fired at Israel.”
– PM Netanyahu
Israel’s counter-strike against the Syrian government’s forces angered the Assad regime, who strongly condemned it as an unwarranted act of aggression and vowed to retaliate after the rebel threat has been subdued. Since the war has lasted four years and shows little sign of ending, the threat of war is most likely not an immediate danger. But in the volatile atmosphere, anything could happen at any time.
Nevertheless, the United States Department of State issued a travel warning for US citizens in northern Israel after Thursday’s rocket fire.
“Due to the launching of rockets from Syria toward Israel and other cross-border activity in northeastern Israel and northern Golan Heights on August 20 and 21, we urge U.S. citizens to carefully consider and possibly defer travel in the Upper Galilee area of northern Israel and the northern part of Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, until the situation stabilizes.”
Notably, the State Department referred to the Golan Heights as “occupied” territory. The Obama Administration has made a habit of highlighting what it considers Israel’s illegal occupation of the Golan Heights, eastern Jerusalem, and Jewish settlements in the West Bank. Under Israeli law, however, the Golan Heights are formally part of Israel. Israel captured this territory during the Six Day War in 1967, and officially annexed it as part of the country in 1981.
The Golan Heights overlook Israel’s densely populated Galilee region, and is considered strategically important for the defense of Israel’s farms, communities, and water supply in that region. It is not and never has been included in Israel’s attempts to negotiate a peace treaty with the Palestinians, yet the current US administration seeks every opportunity to undermine Israel’s legal claim to this land. The travel warning is just the latest use of official administrative statements designed to reinforce Israel’s international image as an illegal occupier.
