Israel Shells Syria and Gaza
Israel waging war without declaring it.
by Stephen Lendman
A previous article said beware of false flags. For months throughout the Syrian conflict, possible full-scale Western intervention loomed. It still does. Post-US elections, it's more likely, not certain, but reports suggest expect it.
Several stray mortar shells from Syria struck occupied Golan. No injuries were reported. Israel holds Damascus responsible. On November 9, Israel warned Assad.
Vice Prime Minister Moshe Ya'alon said, "We see the regime in Syria as responsible for what is happening along the border.""If we see that it is spreading in our direction, we will know how to defend the citizens of the State of Israel and the State of Israel's sovereignty."
Defense Minister Ehud Barak added, "We have made clear via UNDOF (Golan's United Nations Disengagement Observer Force) that we intend for there not to be shells falling on us."
Without elaborating, he added: "I hope this will not continue, and that the rebels will win in Syria, that Assad will fall and that, at long last, a new stage in the life of Syria will begin."
It's hard imagining what he means or wants. Israel already has post-Mubarak Egypt to deal with. Mohamed Morsi is more outspoken on issues where both countries disagree.
Similar or more extremist Syrian governance would substitute a peaceful opponent for one more adversarial. The adage about being careful for what you wish applies.
On November 11, another stray mortar shell struck Golan. In response, Israel fired cross-border warning shots. On November 12, Haaretz headlined "IDF strikes Syria mortar bomb battery, after errant shell lands in Israel," saying:
Doing so was the second time in two days. It was the sixth time in over a week. Warning shots were fired earlier. Israel had a target in mind this time. It claimed a direct hit.
Israeli tanks "fired artillery at two Syrian mortar shell batteries." The IDF "fired a Tamuz anti-tank missile with a range of 25 kilometers in the direction of a Syrian army mortar crew that had launched a shell which overshot the Golan disengagement fence. There were no casualties on either side."
Israel has had Tamuz missiles since the 1980s. It wasn't made public until last year. They were used in the 2006 Lebanon war and Cast Lead. Last week, Israel warned Assad about conflict spilling over into Golan.
