Israeli Forces Attack Syrian Military Post – Obama Assures $200 Million to Jordan
On Sunday, Israeli forces responded to small fire coming from Syria by firing a Tammuz missile into a Syrian military post. Israel’s officials were not sure if the gunfire came from Syrian rebels or the government, however, they keep in place a zero tolerance policy. According to the Times of Israel, the building hit by Israel in Tel Fares was destroyed, leaving two individuals injured.
A military spokesperson told the Times that Israeli troops answered back with “accurate fire toward the Syrian post from which they were fired upon.” Despite the news source nearly placing blame on the Syrian military post for instigating, the military official said he was unable to give an accurate response as to where the shots came from. The Times points out, “On Saturday, an IDF patrol convoy in the Golan Heights came under rifle fire from the same Syrian army post as fighting continued along Israel’s borders with Israel and Jordan.” There were no Israeli casualties.
Officials are not sure if shots fired in the direction of Israeli forces, both on Saturday and Sunday, were intentional or not. Moshe Ya’alon, Israel’s Defense Minister explained, “In response, the IDF retaliated according to the policy instated by the government: Any breach of Israeli sovereignty from the Syrian side will immediately precipitate the suppression of the sources of fire.” It is still unclear whether Syrian gunfire was intentional, after all, there was no one injured around Israeli territory.
Israelis believe they need to display and take precautious measures to assure that the Golan Heights region maintains peace, considering the growing strength of Syrian extremist groups. Aside from acknowledging that, yes, Israel’s military struck a Syrian post; Defense Minister Ya’alon also said Syria’s government was held responsible. Oddly enough, Ya’alon accepts that Israeli Defense Forces don’t know where the attack came from, but says Syria’s government has been reprimanded for their actions.
It should be noted that rebel forces in Syria have taken over areas near where Israeli forces witnessed gunfire. As recently as last week Syrian government and rebel forces were clashing along the Israeli border.
This hasn’t been the only strike by Israelis; during the end of January, warplanes struck multiple locations inside Syria. SLN detailed, “Tuesday night’s Israeli attack on Syria brought confusion to the media as to what was hit inside Syria, and as the dust started to settle, it seems everyone was right. Multiple sites were targeted inside Syria. Time magazine reported Friday that the two confirmed targets were the Scientific Studies and Research Center in Jamaya, northwest of Damascus, and the convoy that carried alleged anti-aircraft missiles going towards Lebanon.”
The attack by the IDF came just days after U.S. President Obama met with Israeli leaders including Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel’s President Shimon Peres. Peres greeted the U.S. leader saying, “A world without America’s leadership, without her moral voice, would be a darker world. A world without your friendship, would invite aggression against Israel.” Both leaders of Israel and the U.S. agreed on close support of each other and no tolerance over any debacles from lingering “threats” like Iran and Syria.
Making his rounds in Israel, President Obama also took a pit stop in Jordan, which only seemed to be for writing checks. Jordan’s King Abdullah II has cited in the past few weeks that Jordan as a whole has received nearly 500,000 refugees from Syria due to the civil war. Abdullah explained that with hundreds of thousands of refugees, Jordan’s economy was suffering and destabilization could become apparent.
Bringing solutions to the table, President Obama is now looking to fund the Jordanian government $200 million for refugee costs to keep the economy stable. Business Week reports, “Jordan received more than $800 million from the U.S. last year, including $120 million in special assistance to offset costs related to Syrian refugees.” Although the U.S. may not be directly involved with the Syrian civil war, they’ve done everything but become directly involved from giving the “green light” for Israel to strike Syria, to funding many groups and organizations around the battlefield.
