EU Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said the war-torn country has seen a significant drop in violence since a cessation of hostilities came into effect. “I don’t think we are going to see an escalation but that’s a result of the backing and the support that the Russians and the Iranians give to the Assad regime and what we had lately, we have battles on the border that sometimes cross the border to Israel. Some of the ammunition cross the border to the Israeli territory, that’s why Israel responds again and again. I don’t think that the incident that we had last night is going to change dramatically the situation,” said an Israeli Golan Heights resident.
Although there was some violence after sunset on Monday (September 12), by early morning the guns had fallen almost entirely silent, and UN aid trucks made way to assist people in besieged areas. There were some reports, however, of clashes between government and opposition forces around Harasta and fighting in the southern province of Quneitra, which is adjacent to the border with Israel, between government forces and the al-Qaeda linked Nusra Front, an Islamist group that is excluded from the ceasefire and which has renamed itself Jabhat Fatah al-Sham. Also Three mortar shells exploded last night in Israel’s northern Golan Heights, in what defense officials said was errant-fire from intensive battles between the Syrian military and Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, not far from the Israeli-Syrian border. In response to the Syrian fire into Israeli territory, the Israeli Air Force targeted artillery installations belonging to the Syrian army.
In a statement, the IDF’s spokesperson’s unit said Israel would not tolerate any attempt to challenge the sovereignty of the state of Israel and the security of its residents. The statement added that “The IDF views the Syrian regime as responsible for the events in its territory, but would not hesitate to take action against other opposition elements in Syria.” No injuries or damage was reported as a result of the mortar fire towards Israel’s north.
The battles against the Al-Qaeda linked group has however, caused some errant fire to explode in Israeli territory, bringing about several Israeli responses. A retired Israeli colonel and Research associate at the Institute of Counter Terrorism said the tense situation on Israel’s northern border would not escalate as a result of the backing and support the Assad regime receives from Russia and Iran, which puts Israel in a very difficult position.
“Today, calm appears to have prevailed across Hama, Latakia, Aleppo city, and rural Aleppo and Idlib, with only some allegations of sporadic and geographically isolated incidents. Sources on the ground, which do matter, including inside Aleppo city, say the situation has dramatically improved with no air strikes,” said de Mistura.
Meanwhile, Yehuda Avraham, a local resident of the Israeli Golan Heights, voiced hope that the current cessation of hostilities in Syria would endure. He said the people of Israel pray for true peace in Syria.