BICOM

An Israeli 15-year-old boy was killed yesterday after the civilian vehicle he was travelling in with his father was struck by fire from across the Syrian border. He is the first Israeli to be killed as a result of cross-border fire since the Syrian conflict began.

Israeli security officials believe that the car was hit by anti-tank fire from an area under the control of troops loyal to Syrian President Assad. The boy was named as Mohammed Karkara, from Arraba, an Arab village in the lower Galilee region. He was accompanying his father, a civilian contractor, who was delivering water to workers strengthening the border fence between Israel and Syria, when the attack occurred. Two other people in the vehicle were also injured.

An IDF spokesman called the incident “an unprovoked act of aggression against Israel.” Meanwhile, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Karkara’s father to offer condolences and told the media, “Israel’s enemies … don’t hesitate to attack civilians or kill children.” He added that, “They don’t differentiate between the Jewish and non-Jewish citizens of Israel.”

Over the past few months, mortar and gunfire from fighting in Syria has landed on Israeli territory with some regularity. More often than not the Israeli military has determined errant Syrian fire to be unintentional and has been careful to keep its distance from the fighting. However, Israeli soldiers were targeted near the border; just three weeks ago, a Syrian shell landed on Israel’s section of the Golan Heights, prompting Israel to fire artillery shells in response.

Israeli officials determined that yesterday’s incident was a deliberate attack. Israeli tanks immediately struck at the source of fire. Last night, Israel’s Air Force delivered a larger-scale response, hitting nine Syrian army targets. The targets, according to the IDF included “Syrian [regional] military headquarters and launching positions.” According to Army Radio, Syrian Army 90^th Division positions were hit in the raids. An IDF statement reported, “We identified accurate strikes on the targets.”