Two Israeli raiding parties, apparently helicopter-borne, attacked military targets deep inside Syria last night and returned to their bases without suffering casualties. One target was a Syrian military camp near the town of Nabek, 42 miles northeast of Damascus and 69 miles behind the Israel-Syrian cease-fire demarcation line. The other was a highway bridge 24 miles south of Damascus. The camp, occupied by about 1000 Syrian troops, was shelled with mortars inflicting heavy casualties, a military spokesman said. The Israeli announcement said the bridge was “sabotaged” but gave no details. It is located at Burak, on the highway connecting Damascus with Sweida, seat of the so-called United Arab Command embracing the armies of Jordan, Syria and Iraq. Two Israeli soldiers were killed and five wounded by Egyptian artillery fire in the Suez Canal zone yesterday. A military spokesman said it was the first serious shelling in several days since Israel began its almost around-the-clock air raids on Egyptian gun positions and strong points in the canal zone. The spokesman described the shelling as of medium intensity. The dead soldiers were identified as Second Lt. Benjamin Laskin, 21, of Tel Aviv and Pvt. Jacob Schmerler, 20, of Hadera.
Three residents of Khan Yunis in the northern Gaza Strip were killed when a grenade exploded in the market place today. Twenty-one other local Arabs including four children were injured. Security forces are combing the area for the grenade-throwers. Twelve Arabs detained on suspicion of terrorist collaboration were expelled to Jordan today. The transfer was carried out at the Gharandal desert police station in the Araba district of the Negev. Last night’s raid into Syria was described as a retaliatory strike for a Syrian attack in the Golan Heights a week ago in which three Israeli soldiers including one girl were killed. A military spokesman said Syria violated the cease-fire 49 times in the last 30 days. The Israeli raids represented the deepest penetration so far into Syria, Previous helicopter raids three months ago were aimed at an army camp and an electric power pylon near Damascus. Israel Air Force jets attacked Egyptian targets in the Suez Canal zone intermittently throughout the day and returned safely to their bases, a military spokesman announced.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
