WhatsappResidents of northern Israel saw a trail of smoke in the sky this morning and the sound of an explosion.
The IDF reported that a Patriot missile was shot at a UAV (an unmanned plane). The plane flew towards the Syrian border with Israel from inside Syria.
#breaking initial reports of a Patriot missile launched over Safed in Northern Israel. So far it is being checked. 📹Unknown credit. More to follow pic.twitter.com/Xlfyz2mLg6
— Yonat Friling (@Foxyonat) June 24, 2018
What Happened?
“A short while ago, Israel launched a Patriot aerial defense system missile towards an unmanned aerial vehicle that approached the Israeli border from Syria. As a result, the aircraft retreated from the border. No identification of a hit.” the IDF said.
“The IDF’s aerial defense system identified the threat in advance before it crossed into Israeli territory.
“The IDF will not allow the State of Israel’s aerial sovereignty to be violated. It will operate to prevent any attempts to harm its civilians,” the IDF said.
The municipality of Tzfat said: “The noise heard throughout the city stems from our forces shooting at a target in the Syrian region.”
The Mayor of Tzfar said that “the noise you all heard was our forces firing at a target within Syrian territory. Go on about your day.”
“Air defense systems, as well as detection systems, identified the threat in advance. This happened before it crossed into the country.”
“The IDF will not allow a violation of our sovereignty.”
According to Israeli television, a commander of forces from the Assad regime says that Israel fired a Patriot missile at their aircraft. The aircraft flew in southern Syria.
Patriot Missiles
Patriot missiles are extremely expensive. Israel would not shoot a patriot missile if not for a very good reason. The IDF probably used the patriot missile today in order to ensure that the enemy gets the message. It shows just how serious Israel is in order to defend the safety of her airspace. This is a classic case of strong deterrence.
