Israel fires on Syrian military outpost in Golan buffer zone

It is the second time in two days that Israeli tanks fired on Syrian outposts hastily constructed in the demilitarized zone, in contravention of a 1974 ceasefire agreement.

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JERUSALEM (JTA) — The Israel Defense Forces fired on a Syrian military outpost in the demilitarized zone between Israel and Syria on the Golan Heights for the second time in two days.

Israeli tanks fired warning shots on the military installation Sunday evening after Syrian soldiers were spotted working to fortify the outpost in violation of the 1974 ceasefire agreement, the army said.

On Saturday, an IDF tank also fired warning shots after spotting a Syrian military outpost in the demilitarized zone on the Golan, also in violation of the ceasefire agreement. That outpost was constructed near the Druze village of Khadr, which the IDF earlier this month vowed to defend after Sunni militants killed nine people there.

Israel has refrained from any major intervention in Syria’s long-running civil war that was not deemed to have short- or medium-term implications for Israel.

But the IDF announcement reflected how the Druze are valued inside Israel as brethren by many Jews because thousands of them enlist in the IDF with the blessing of their communal leaders. Several Druze soldiers have reached the upper echelon of the army.

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