Mines taken from an old Israeli minefield; army plans to file complaint to UN.
By YAAKOV KATZgolan mine field 298.88(photo credit: Courtesy)
IDF troops discovered 10 mines Saturday afternoon that were thrown into Israel by Syrian shepherds.
The mines were found along the border fence in the Golan Heights by an IDF reservist force and were neutralized by an Engineering Corps force later in the day.
IDF sources said that Israel planned to file an official complaint with the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which is deployed in Syria to maintain the ceasefire with Israel.
The mines were taken from an old Israeli minefield on the Syrian side of the border and were thrown over the security fence that separates Israel from Syria.
"This is certainly a provocation, but it does not indicate a major escalation," said one officer in the Northern Command, who pointed to a number of recent border incidents involving Syrian shepherds.
Saturday's border incident came on the heels of a Jerusalem Post report on Friday that Syria has spent the past few months constructing and moving infrastructure to its southern border that could be used to launch a war against Israel.
According to defense officials, the Syrian military - while restricted in the number of troops it is allowed to deploy along the border - has moved military infrastructure, including fuel depots, closer to the frontier. The Syrians have also built structures in the area that could serve as weapons stores and military bases.
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