Israel Uses Iron Dome for the First Time at Syrian Border

Simultaneously with the statements of the Chief of Staff of the Israeli Army that the country does not 'assist' the al-Nusra Front in Syria, the Iron Dome missile defense system has been used for the first time at the Israel-Syria border. According to the Jerusalem Post, on Saturday, September 18, the Israeli army utilized the Iron Dome system to intercept two rockets fired from Syrian territory. This was the tenth attack from Syria on Israel in the past two weeks; of the ten rockets fired, eight hit Israel, but with the activation of the Iron Dome system, the rockets were 'intercepted in the air' on Saturday night. Until now, Israel had used the Iron Dome missiles for the security of southern settlements against rockets fired from the Gaza Strip, and this is the first time that some of these missiles have been deployed at the border with Syria. Since the 'ceasefire agreement' between Israel and Syria in 1974, this is the first time that the Israel-Syria border has experienced serious tension. The Syrian government's air defense attempted to shoot down an Israeli fighter jet and an attacking drone on Tuesday, September 21, but Israel emphasized that the targeting of Syrian air defense's S-200 missiles was unsuccessful. This is the first time since the 1973 war that Syrian air defense has attempted to shoot down an Israeli fighter jet. The Israeli army has stated that regardless of whether rockets and mortars are fired at Israel from any party in Syria, intentionally or not, Israel will attack Syrian army positions because it holds Bashar al-Assad's government responsible. Syrian sources and Hezbollah's Twitter account claimed that in the latest attack by an Israeli drone on Saturday night, September 18, in the 'al-Baath' settlement in northern Quneitra, three members of the Syrian militia known as 'National Defense' were killed and dozens more were injured. Meanwhile, according to the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper's website, the Israeli army has not confirmed the drone attack on Syria on Saturday night. Israel: We have no connection with ISIS, al-Nusra Front, and Ahrar al-Sham. According to Israeli media, General Eisenkot assured the Druze residents of the occupied Golan Heights on Friday, September 26, that his country has 'no connection with ISIS, al-Nusra Front, and Ahrar al-Sham.' General Eisenkot told Sheikh 'Muwafaq Tarif,' the spiritual leader of the Druze Arabs in this area, 'I look into your eyes and boldly say, we have no connection with the extremist jihadists in Syria.' The Chief of Staff of the Israeli army visited the 'Julius' settlement, where the Druze Arabs live. General Eisenkot also told the Druze Arabs that we must have contacts with moderate opposition forces stationed near our border in Syria, but this is to maintain calm and ensure the security of this border and the areas where you live. According to Israeli media, the Druze residents of the occupied Golan Heights had asked the Israeli army to support the Druze in Syria. The Druze Arabs in areas that Israel has occupied since 1967 and has 'officially' annexed to Israel were angry about reports of Israel's 'assistance' to opposition forces in Syria. Young Druze protesters in northern Israel attacked ambulances carrying wounded al-Nusra fighters being transferred for treatment to a hospital in northern Israel months ago, killing two of the injured. Previously, the al-Nusra Front had been accused of horrific massacres against Druze citizens in Syria. After the attack by the Druze in the occupied area on Israeli ambulances, the Israeli Prime Minister claimed that the treatment of Syrian injured, which had previously been carried out for 'humanitarian purposes,' was 'halted.' The al-Nusra Front changed its name to 'Jabhat Fatah al-Sham' shortly before the ceasefire in Syria. However, the U.S., Russia, and the United Nations emphasized that the nature of this group remains terrorist. The ceasefire in Syria has remained relatively stable since the evening of Monday, September 22, coinciding with the Eid al-Adha, and according to the agreement between the U.S. and Russia, if it remains stable for seven days, these two countries will jointly attack the positions of groups such as ISIS and 'Jabhat Fatah al-Sham.'