Israel deploys tanks along Syrian border
- 11 years ago
An Israeli tank rumbles into position in the Golan Heights.
It is the first time in over 40 years the Jewish State has deployed tanks to the contested area, which officials say is in response to Syria's increasingly bloody civil war.
Battles between rebels fighting against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces in villages nearby are being closely watched by Israel's military.
(SOUNDBITE) (Hebrew) SECOND LIEUTENANT YONI SHILO, COMMANDER OF AN ISRAELI TANK PLATOON, SAYING:
"I am here and know that there are battles inside Syria, my aim is to prevent them from spreading into Israel. I am here so that the border remains a border, their issues remain their issues and that they don't reach us".
Syrian rebels have been on the back foot against Assad's army in the south of the country, with pro-regime forces taking the strategic city of Qusair last month.
Assad re-shuffled the leadership of his ruling Baath party on Monday.
The shuffle is seen by s
It is the first time in over 40 years the Jewish State has deployed tanks to the contested area, which officials say is in response to Syria's increasingly bloody civil war.
Battles between rebels fighting against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces in villages nearby are being closely watched by Israel's military.
(SOUNDBITE) (Hebrew) SECOND LIEUTENANT YONI SHILO, COMMANDER OF AN ISRAELI TANK PLATOON, SAYING:
"I am here and know that there are battles inside Syria, my aim is to prevent them from spreading into Israel. I am here so that the border remains a border, their issues remain their issues and that they don't reach us".
Syrian rebels have been on the back foot against Assad's army in the south of the country, with pro-regime forces taking the strategic city of Qusair last month.
Assad re-shuffled the leadership of his ruling Baath party on Monday.
The shuffle is seen by s