Israeli Strikes in Southern Syria

An American report has shown that the latest round of Israeli airstrikes on Syria damaged a landing runway at Damascus International Airport. (Reuters file photo)
An American report has shown that the latest round of Israeli airstrikes on Syria damaged a landing runway at Damascus International Airport. (Reuters file photo)
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Israeli Strikes in Southern Syria

An American report has shown that the latest round of Israeli airstrikes on Syria damaged a landing runway at Damascus International Airport. (Reuters file photo)
An American report has shown that the latest round of Israeli airstrikes on Syria damaged a landing runway at Damascus International Airport. (Reuters file photo)

Israeli tanks fired Wednesday on suspects along the Syrian border in the Golan Heights after they were detected near its forces, the military said.

"A short time ago during army activity in the Golan Heights, soldiers identified suspects close to a military position and fired in their direction from tanks," the army said in a brief statement.

"The suspects then moved away into Syrian territory," it added.

In the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel seized part of the strategic Golan Heights -- bordered by Lebanon, which patrols there -- from Syria, AFP reported.

The official Syrian news agency SANA said Israeli forces had also "attacked with tank shells the forests of Al-Hurriyah village" in the Syrian province of Quneitra, which borders the Israeli-occupied section of Golan Heights.

SANA added that Israeli helicopters and reconnaissance planes also flew over the area.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitor, said a fire broke out in the forest near the village and that there had been Israeli helicopters present, but did not mention casualties.

Israel considers this part area of southern Syria to be a "second front" of Hezbollah, which is close to Israel's arch-foe Iran.

Since 2011 and the outbreak of Syria's civil war, Israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes on Syrian territory, targeting government positions as well as allied Iran-backed forces and Hezbollah fighters.

Israel says it is trying to prevent Iran, one of Damascus' key allies in the decade-old civil conflict, from gaining a permanent military foothold on its doorstep.

On Tuesday, the Israeli Defense Force said it had shot down a small Hezbollah observation drone flown over the heavily guarded Israel-Lebanon border.



Harris Calls for Gaza Ceasefire after Hamas Leader’s Killing

 US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks to the press before a campaign rally at Western International High School in Detroit, Michigan, October 19, 2024. (AFP)
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks to the press before a campaign rally at Western International High School in Detroit, Michigan, October 19, 2024. (AFP)
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Harris Calls for Gaza Ceasefire after Hamas Leader’s Killing

 US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks to the press before a campaign rally at Western International High School in Detroit, Michigan, October 19, 2024. (AFP)
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks to the press before a campaign rally at Western International High School in Detroit, Michigan, October 19, 2024. (AFP)

US Vice President Kamala Harris said on Saturday that the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, a mastermind of the attack that ignited the war in the Gaza Strip, presented an opportunity for a ceasefire in the Middle East.

"This creates an opening that I believe we must take full advantage of to dedicate ourselves to ending this war and bringing the hostages home," Harris told reporters.

"As it relates to the issues in the Middle East and in particular in that region, it has never been easy. But that doesn't mean we give up. It's always going to be difficult."

The Oct. 7 attack Sinwar planned on Israeli communities a year ago killed around 1,200 people, with another 253 dragged back to Gaza as hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's subsequent war has devastated Gaza, killing more than 42,500 Palestinians, with another 10,000 uncounted dead thought to lie under the rubble, Gaza health authorities say.