An IDF soldier on Thursday was struck by a stray bullet originating from the Syrian side of the border.The soldier's bulletproof vest prevented serious injury, however he did suffer light wounds in the incident.It was the third time in recent days that fire from battles raging between the Syrian military and rebels near the border of Israel crossed the border.Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu toured the Golan Heights on Wednesday amid the border incidents. Barak stated that nearly all of the Syrian villages along the border with Israel are in rebel hands.Israel fired at and struck two Syrian mortar launchers on Monday, following the second time in as many days that Syrian artillery shells exploded in Israeli territory.A tank from the 401 Armored Brigade fired at the Syrian targets in what was an escalated Israeli retaliation to Syrian fire. Unlike Sunday’s exchange, the IDF fired with the intention of hitting its target, as part of a new policy designed to deter Syrian forces from firing into Israel.There were conflicting reports on whether Syrian soldiers were injured in the aftermath. IDF sources said there were no known injuries, though a Channel 2 report claimed that a number of soldiers in Syria were hurt, and broadcast video of a Syrian ambulance sent to evacuate the soldiers.The IDF does not believe that Monday’s shell was deliberate, but intensified its response nonetheless in order to send the message to Damascus that the errant shells must stop.
