INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Jerusalem: Israel launched its newest air defence system on Monday on the Syrian frontier, where Damascus's Russian-backed forces have been
routing rebels, as Moscow sent envoys for what it called "urgent" talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.Netanyahu planned to
meet Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and its armed forces chief, General Valery Gerasimov, later in the day, a visit the Israeli
leader said was arranged last week at the request of Russian President Vladimir Putin.Israel has been on high alert as Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad regains ground from southern rebels, bringing his forces close to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.In a sign of high
tensions, Israel launched two David's Sling interceptor missiles at rockets which the Israeli military later said fell inside Syrian
territory and were part of the internal fighting there.It was Israel's first published operational use of the mid-range missiles, which are
jointly manufactured by US firm Raytheon Co
The incident triggered sirens in northern Israel and on the Golan.The military did not immediately elaborate on whether the targets were
shot down by David's Sling
Israel deployed the system last year to complement its short-range Iron Dome and long-range Arrow interceptors.Netanyahu held talks with
Putin in Moscow on July 11 amid Israeli concern that Assad, an old foe, may defy a 1974 demilitarisation deal on the Golan or allow his
Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah allies to deploy there.Russia, whose foreign ministry confirmed Lavrov's visit, has said it wants to see the
separation of forces on the frontier preserved
Lavrov's deputy, Grigory Karasin, told Russian media the foreign minister's trip was "urgent and important".Netanyahu, in broadcast remarks,
said he would tell the envoys that "Israel insists on the separation of forces agreement between us and Syria being honoured, as they were
honoured for decades until the civil war in Syria broke out".He also reaffirmed "Israel will continue to act against any attempt by Iran and
its proxies to entrench militarily in Syria".Syrian state television said on Sunday an Israeli air strike hit a military post in the city of
Misyaf in Syria's Hama province but caused only material damage
An Israeli military spokeswoman said it does not comment on foreign reports.Also on Sunday, hundreds of Syrian "White Helmet" rescue workers
and their families fled advancing government forces and slipped over the border into Jordan with the help of Israeli soldiers and Western
powers.© Thomson Reuters 2018(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is published from
