Yedioth Ahronoth: Targeting Israeli forces in Syria is only a matter of time
According to the Israeli Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, Sunday, the fear that the Israeli army forces in Syria will be targeted from the occupied Syrian Golan, as Israeli intelligence notices the intention of some groups to approach the area in order to target the soldiers.
In an article by political affairs correspondent Yoav Ziton, the newspaper quoted an officer from the Northern Command warning that “it’s a matter of standing by only until we receive a surprise anti-tank missile or mortar shell on our force here, in a way that leads to the killing of some soldiers”.
“Everything will turn for the worse,” the officer added, explaining that it’s difficult to explain “the value of the mission in Syria to the soldiers,” since “there is no enemy here and we aren’t carrying out any attacks, missions or operations of value, all the time”.
The Israeli commander continued, stressing that the noisy Israeli presence in Syria, with tanks crossing almost every day, could attract armed groups as an opposite effect, meaning that they might attack the occupation forces, whose leaders in Syria describe the operational reality as far from usefulness and importance.
In the same context, Yedioth Ahronoth referred to two incidents in which the Israeli army opened fire on Syrian demonstrators protesting the Israeli occupation of their lands, warning that they may not be the last, and pointing out that the soldiers claimed that they felt threatened.
The Israeli newspaper pointed out that the Israeli army is collecting many weapons in the Golan heights, including hundreds of old weapons, in addition to others from the Syrian army sites.
The Israeli army is also collecting remaining weapons in the area, not only old Soviet tanks, but also new anti-tank missiles, lots of ammunition and mortars.
The Israeli newspaper reported that the scope of the Israeli army’s activity in Syria is within the size of two regular brigades, referring to an urgent plan to strengthen control over the Syrian Mount Hermon.
The plan calls for the establishment of sites by the Technology and Logistics Division on two levels, at an altitude of 2,400 m and on the top of the mountain at an altitude of 2,800 m, with long-term infrastructure for the hundreds of fighters who will occupy the sector there, warehouses and means of supply for periods of interruption due to snowstorms and roads to be paved from the Israeli side.
