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Syria Claims to Have Fired on Israeli Aircraft Violating Its Airspace

Thursday , September 06, 2007

AP

DAMASCUS, Syria  —
Syrian air defenses opened fire on Israeli aircraft after they violated Syrian airspace, Syrian officials said Thursday, sharply elevating cross-border tensions.

The aircraft, which had broken the sound barrier as they flew over northern Syria, "dropped munitions" onto deserted areas overnight after coming under Syrian fire, a military spokesman said, according to the official Syrian Arab News Agency.

The incident is likely to stoke concerns that tensions could lead to military conflict between Syria and Israel, though both countries have repeatedly said in recent months that they do not seek a war.

Israel has demanded Syria stop its support for the Hezbollah and Hamas militant groups, which have both been holding captured Israeli soldiers for more than a year.

Syria, in turn, has increasingly pushed its demands for the return of the Israeli-held Golan Heights and is concerned that it is being left out of a U.S.-brokered Mideast peace conference due to be held in November.

Syrian officials did not say how many Israeli aircraft entered its airspace or what type they were. Israel's army spokesman declined to comment, saying he could not discuss military operations.

Syria stopped short of accusing the aircraft of bombing its territory. Asked if Israel had attacked Syria, Syrian Cabinet Minister Buthaina Shaaban said on Al-Jazeera television's English service that the aircraft violated Syrian airspace.

"We are a sovereign country. They cannot do that," Shaaban said.

The Syrian military spokesman said "air defense units confronted" the Israeli aircraft and "forced them to leave after they dropped some munitions in deserted areas without causing any human or material damage."

"We warn the Israeli enemy government against this flagrant aggressive act, and retain the right to respond in an appropriate way," the spokesman said.

The Syrians did not say the aircraft struck targets, and it was not clear what the spokesman meant by dropping munitions. Warplanes sometimes drop extra fuel tanks to make the aircraft lighter and easier to maneuver.

The route the planes flew, east from the Mediterrranean deep inside Syria, brought Israeli warplanes to the closest point to Iran, separated only by Iraqi Kurdistan.

The United States, Israel and some of their allies fear Tehran is using its civilian nuclear program as a cover to produce atomic weapons. Iran denies the charge, saying its program is solely geared toward generating electricity.

Both Israel and the United States have not ruled out airstrikes should the program expand.

It is unclear if, or how often, Israeli aircraft overfly Syria.

Israel acknowledges flying over Lebanon routinely and is believed to fly routine reconnaissance flights over the Golan Heights to monitor Syrian army moves near the disputed territory. Witnesses said Thursday's incident occurred over the other side of Syria, in the al-Abyad area near the northeast border with Turkey near the Mediterranean.

Syrian officials, including President Bashar Assad, have repeatedly warned Israel in recent weeks that the occupation of the Golan Heights "cannot last forever."

Partly as a result of those statements, concerns grew over the summer that tensions along the frontier could escalate into conflict. But both Syrian and Israeli officials publicly and repeatedly said they had no interest in war.

Late last month, Israeli security officials said the army had determined that war with Syria, whose military had reduced its war readiness, was unlikely and Israel began rotating forces out of the Israeli-held Golan Heights.

Israeli counterterrorism expert Boaz Ganor said that if Thursday's overflight occurred, it's possible Israel was "collecting intelligence on long-range missiles" deployed in northern Syria.

Syrian political analyst Imad Fawzi Shoaibi said that Israel may have been probing new air defense systems provided by Russia.

The Syrian military spokesman did not specify whether the military used surface-to-air missiles or anti-aircraft artillery against the aircraft.

Syria is believed to be unhappy that other Arab countries are headed to a peace meeting in November at which the United States hopes for a high-profile meeting between the Palestinians and Israelis, and perhaps also with Saudi officials.

Syria has long disputed any notion that a comprehensive Arab peace deal can be reached unless it also involves some resolution of the Golan Heights, which it wants back in full.

At the beginning of last summer's war against Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon, Israeli warplanes buzzed Assad's palace in what analysts called a warning to Damascus. They also flew over Assad's summer home in the coastal city of Latakia, after Syrian-backed Palestinian militants in Gaza captured a young Israeli soldier.

In October 2003, Israeli warplanes bombed a Palestinian guerrilla base near Damascus, the first airstrike since the 1973 war.

Syria Claims to Have Fired on Israeli Aircraft Violating Its Airspace (http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,295908,00.html)

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/ShTickers.html

Jerusalem: Signs that operational error sparked incident in Syrian airspace (Ch. 10)
~~~~~~~~~~

This kind of thing happened about 2 months (April) before the 1967 war. Syria and Israel "skirmished" in the air and probed across their borders. Of course, Russia (then Soviet Union) encouraged and supported Syria then as they do today. Maybe the reason Russia has been "testing" the old Cold War air defenses up north recently is to find out if their adversaries still have the ability to respond if something should erupt elsewhere and they are forced to attack. Or maybe they know that if Israel/Syria erupt into war, the US could go after Iran at the same time and they may have an opportunity to do something somewhere themselves. Who knows for sure?

At the same time, the US holds military exercises with India (can't be comforting to Russia or China) and sends an amphibious ship into the ME region with rumors flying that the US may have to land troops in Lebanon!

Now, Israel sends planes over Syria. And I don't buy the press saying it was an accident. Israel doesn't make those kind of mistakes (one sure sign - the press is commenting, but not the IDF). But they could send some planes over to test Syrian response time as well as their recent boast that their air defenses are now the best in the world (with the help of Russia, of course).

All this, coupled with the reporting of increased terrorist "chatter" just today makes me wonder what parts of the puzzle are about to fall in order this time. The ME is interesting, that's for sure. Rumors of wars. A Cold War seems to have started for sure. Will we have to wait long until it becomes a hot war?

If I were in Syria, I'd be canceling that shopping trip in Damascus this week.

The rhetoric is getting very hot from Syria which means that they just might fight--and also try and reclaim the Golan Heights.

We live in very interesting times, and our Lord is in control.

Israel 'prepared' for conflict after Syria alleges IAF flyover
Yaakov Katz and Herb Keinon
THE JERUSALEM POST
Sep. 6, 2007

Israel is "fully prepared" for the possibility of a conflict in the North, defense officials said late Thursday, after Syria alleged it had fired on a pre-dawn IAF flight over the coastal city of Latakia.

The IDF officially refused to comment on reports from Syria that its air defenses fired on a formation of IAF warplanes that entered Syrian airspace from the Mediterranean.

In addition, fears mounted that Hizbullah would use the escalating tensions along the Golan Heights as an excuse to initiate its own conflict with Israel.

Despite these fears, troops and tanks were not massing in the North, and the top defense brass carried on with their regular schedules, attempting to broadcast an air of "business as usual." The IDF's Northern Command released a statement reassuring northern residents that there was "no cause for concern."

Syrian Vice President Farouk Shara, speaking in Italy, said his country was not interested in being drawn into a war with Israel.

Syrian officials reported Thursday afternoon that at around 1 a.m., four or five IAF aircraft broke the sound barrier and dropped fuel tanks over deserted areas in northern Syria, along its border with Turkey. Witnesses said the incident occurred in the Abyad area.

A Syrian military spokesman said that Syrian air defenses then opened fire on the IAF aircraft.

"The Israeli enemy aircraft infiltrated the Arab Syrian territory through the northern border, coming from the Mediterranean, heading toward the eastern region, breaking the sound barrier," the spokesman said. "Air defense units confronted them and forced them to leave. We warn the Israeli enemy government against this flagrant aggressive act, and retain the right to respond in an appropriate way."

The incident came as Syria was pursuing an unprecedented arms buildup and amid growing fears of an impending war. Since the Second Lebanon War, Military Intelligence has warned that while Syria is not really interested in an armed conflict with Israel, a lack of communication between the two countries could cause a war to erupt if a diplomatic resolution were not reached beforehand.

Both the Prime Minister's Office and the Foreign Ministry maintained a complete blackout on any information relating to the incident. Officials declined to answer queries either on or off the record, and would only repeat the IDF Spokesman's Office response on the matter that it was "not accustomed to responding to such reports."

Likud MK Tzahi Hanegbi, chairman of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, said that the IDF response reflected the reality that Israel had no interest in getting into a confrontation with Syria.

In a Channel 2 interview, Hanegbi said Israel's interest was clear: "To reduce the tension and calm the situation."

Adding to the concern in Israel was an announcement by Syrian Information Minister Mohsen Bilal, who said Syria would "find the way" to respond to the Israeli aerial infiltration.

Bilal said the government was "seriously studying the nature of the response," but refused to indicate in an interview with Al-Jazeera whether the reaction would be on the military or diplomatic level. He would not give any more details about the incident, but said it proved Israel's policies were based on hostility.

"Israel, in fact, does not want peace. It cannot survive without aggression, treachery and military messages," he said.

Counterterrorism expert Boaz Ganor said that if Thursday's flyover did occur, it was possible that Israel was "collecting intelligence on long-range missiles" deployed by Syria in the North.

Imad Fawzi Shoaibi, a Syrian political analyst, speculated that Israel may have been probing Syria's new air defense systems, provided by Russia, at a time when tension was running high between the two countries.

Israel has acknowledged making routine flights over Lebanon, but it is unclear how often the IAF flies over Syria, if at all. At the beginning of the Second Lebanon War last summer, warplanes buzzed the palace of Syrian President Bashar Assad in what analysts called a warning to Damascus. In June of the same year, they also flew over Assad's summer home in Latakia, near the border with Turkey, after Hamas terrorists abducted Cpl. Gilad Schalit in Gaza.

Israel 'prepared' for conflict after Syria alleges IAF flyover (http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1188392553869&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter)

Brothers and Sisters,

Several more fuses have been lit, and pieces to the Bible Prophecy puzzle are falling into perfect placement around the world.

If Syria believed in and read the Holy Bible, they would already know that they can say goodbye to Damascus. GOD said that it will be destroyed, and it will be. Blindness, ancient hatreds, and evil are putting the major players exactly where they are supposed to be.

It's fascinating that nothing can be hastened or slowed down. All will take place at the precise second GOD knew it would before the foundation of the world.

Love In Christ,
Tom

 Lebanon calls on Syria to reduce arms smuggling across border
By The Associated Press

Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora urged Syria on Thursday to step up its efforts to prevent arms smuggling into Lebanon, echoing a request made by the United Nations in June after it investigated security along the two countries' shared border.

The UN resolution that ended last summer's Second Lebanon War between Israel and Hezbollah banned weapon transfers to the Iranian- and Syrian-backed militant group, but the Lebanese and Israeli governments have criticized alleged violations by Syria.

"We've always expressed the necessity for serious border control and suitable efforts by our brothers in Syria to control these borders," said Seniora, following a meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo. "The continuation of the [current] situation is subjecting Lebanon to the illegal smuggling of more goods, weapons and individuals."

The U.S. and Israel have repeatedly accused Iran and Syria of supplying Hezbollah with advanced weapons across Syria's border with Lebanon - allegations that Damascus has rejected.

Hezbollah's militias fired nearly 4,000 rockets at northern Israel during the 34-day conflict that began in July 2006, killing 40 Israeli civilians. More than 1,000 Lebanese - mostly civilians - and over 100 Israeli soldiers also died in the fighting.

In late May, the UN Security Council appointed an independent mission to assess monitoring along the Syrian-Lebanese border. Following the investigation, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged Syria and Iran to do more to prevent arms smuggling to Lebanon, citing disturbing reports from the Lebanese and Israeli government of alleged violations of the UN arms embargo.

Seniora repeated a similar call for action Thursday, saying, we hope that serious steps take place soon.

Lebanon calls on Syria to reduce arms smuggling across border (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/901805.html)