Golan Heights under missile attack, Israel retaliates against Syria, Türkiye ready to join in to cool down

Cao nguyên Golan bị nã tên lửa, Israel trả đòn Syria, Mỹ khẳng định đoàn kết, Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ sẵn sàng nhập cuộc. (Nguồn: AFP)

Flares are fired by the Israeli military after a rocket landed on Kibbutz Meitsar in the Golan Heights on April 9. (Source: AFP)

Earlier, the Israeli military said that an air strike warning had been issued in the area. Immediately after the incident, Israeli artillery launched a retaliatory attack on Syria.

On the same day, Lebanon's Al-Mayadeen TV channel reported that the Al-Quds Brigade group claimed responsibility for launching rockets from Syria into the Golan Heights.

Israel seized control of the Golan Heights in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed the 1,200-square ^-kilometer area in 1981, a move not recognized by most of the international community.

The rocket attack came three days after a barrage of rockets were fired toward Israel from southern Lebanon, prompting cross-border retaliation from the Jewish state on sites linked to the Islamist movement Hamas in Lebanon and Gaza.

Regarding the tense situation in the Middle East, on April 8, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin called his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant to express condolences over the deaths of two British citizens of Israeli origin in the West Bank and an Italian tourist in Tel Aviv in terrorist attacks the day before.

According to a statement from the US Department of Defense , Secretary Austin emphasized his support for Israel's security against all threats.

He also called for steps to ensure a peaceful holiday for Jews, Muslims and Christians, welcomed efforts to reduce tensions and stressed the importance of refraining from unilateral actions that exacerbate tensions.

Meanwhile, on the same day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had a phone call with his Israeli counterpart Isaac Herzog to express concern over the Jewish State police raids on the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in East Jerusalem.

During the phone call, Mr. Erdogan told the Israeli leader that Türkiye could not remain silent in the face of “provocations and threats to the status and spirituality of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.”

According to the leader, Israel must not allow tensions that have already spread to the Gaza Strip and Lebanon to escalate further at a sensitive time, when the Muslim holy month of Ramadan coincides with the Jewish Passover.

Stressing the need to prevent clashes from becoming a recurring occurrence during every Ramadan, Erdogan said Ankara was “ready to do its utmost to find the root of the problem and take steps towards establishing a just and lasting peace .”

Earlier this week, Israeli police raided the complex, sparking clashes with Palestinian worshippers and sparking a new round of cross-border attacks between Israel and militants.