Crisis In Israel As ISIS Takes Control Of Golan Heights On Syrian Side

NTEB News Desk | June 27, 2014 | 15 Comments

Will ISIS cross the border into Israel?

“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.” Psalm 122:6
The Times of Israel reported today that almost the entire Syrian side of the Golan Heights is now under the control of rebel forces, including radical Islamist groups, a senior Israeli military commander in the area said Friday.

Smoke rises from a fire as a result of fighting in the the Syrian village of Quneitra near the border with Israel, as seen from an observatory near the Quneitra crossing, Thursday, June 6, 2013 (photo credit: AP/Sebastian Scheiner)

Only the Quneitra border area is still in the hands of forces loyal to President Bashar Assad, Lt.-Col. Anan Abbas, deputy commander of the Golan Brigade, told Israel’s Channel 10. About 95 percent of the Syrian side of the Golan is in the hands of anti-Assad rebels, including radical Islamic groups such as the Al-Nusra Front, affiliated with al-Qaeda, a rival of the burgeoning Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, better known as ISIL or ISIS.

One of two Syrian army brigades that used to control the area has completely disappeared, the officer said. At present, the Islamist groups in the area are focused on the war against Assad, he said, “but we know their goal is to harm Israel; we’ve seen their propaganda material.”