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Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Asharq Al-Awsat

Israel Missile Hits Car in Syria's Golan Heights After Sniper Attack Attempt

A picture taken on March 27, 2019 from the village of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights shows Israeli military vehicles patrolling the border fence along the border with Syria. | Jalaa Marey, AFP

Israeli forces on Monday fired a missile at a car on the edge of Syria's Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, after identifying an attempted sniper attack from the area.

"Israeli troops identified an attempted sniper attack in the northern Golan Heights area. In response, the troops targeted the vehicle involved in the attempted attack," the statement said.

There was no immediate word on casualties.

Syrian state TV described the Israeli missile attack in the village of Ein Tinneh, near the town of Quneitra, as an "aggression."

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, said the car belonged to a pro-government militia, and was destroyed.

The strike took place on election day in Israel, where voters will decide whether longtime Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stays in power. Netanyahu has tried to portray himself as a statesman who is uniquely qualified to lead the country through challenging times.

The missile attack came days after an Israeli drone hit a car in southern Syria and killed one person, according to Syrian state TV. The Observatory said the targeted man was an anti-Israel operative.

Israel controls most of the Golan Heights plateau, part of territory it captured in a 1967 war. The frontier has been tense throughout Syria's civil war.

In recent years, Israel has repeatedly carried out airstrikes in Syria against targets belonging to Iran and its regional proxies. One airstrike last month killed two members of the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad, which is backed by Iran.

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