Special to WorldTribune.com

Israeli artillery forces shelled two Syrian military targets in the Golan Heights on Sept. 27 after a stray round from Syria exploded in Israeli territory.

“The IDF holds the Syrian military responsible for all events stemming from its territory and will not tolerate any attempt to harm Israel’s sovereignty and the safety of its residents,” the IDF said in a statement.

The stray round from Syria was the second in two days to land in Israeli territory and occurred at a time when Israeli officials are assessing their strategy on handling residual effects from the conflict in Syria amid an increased Russian presence.

On Sept. 28, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to compose a coordination team between the two countries that will be tasked with preventing Israel and Russia from trading fire in Syria.

Netanyahu is said to have approached Moscow with concerns that Russia’s buildup could prevent Israel from blocking arms to Syria that could wind up in the hands of Hizbullah who would in turn use them to attack Israel.

While Israel has, for the most part, stayed out of Syria’s civil war, it has on occasion struck weapons convoys suspected of attempting to deliver arms to Hizbullah.

According to Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, Syrian artillery engaged in battles near the Golan Heights were responsible for the two stray fire incidents.

“From our perspective this is a violation of sovereignty and a crossing of a red line. The State of Israel has no intention of ignoring such incidents, and the IDF therefore attacked two Syrian army artillery positions this evening,” Ya’alon said on Sept. 27.

“We view the Syrian regime and its army as being responsible for what happens in their territory and we will not be tolerant in cases such as these.”

There were no injuries or damage reported from the stray fire incidents.

  ‘holds Syrian military responsible’ for stray fire, Benjamin Netanyahu, Golan Heights, Israel shells border army post, Moshe Ya’alon, Vladimir Putin, WorldTribune.com