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Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Syria accuses Israel of setting forest fires in the Golan

From Syria's SANA agency:
Israeli occupation forces on Monday deliberately set fires to forests in the occupied Syrian Golan that expanded to 4 K.M opposite to the liberated towns of al-Rafid and al-Asha as part of its daily aggressive policy against citizens of the Golan.

"The Israeli occupation forces' deliberate act of setting fires in the Golan aims at destroying the environmental and vital diversity in the area, Governor of Quneitra Hussein Arnous said.

He called on the international legal organizations to assume responsibilities towards the Israeli flagrant violations of setting fires in the occupied Golan or along the cease-fire line.

Firas Samara, Head of fire fighting operations in al-Quneitra underlined that the Israeli forces set fire to the western side of al-Adnaniya and al-Asha towns inside the cease-fire line in the Golan along 4 K.M length which damaged forestry and plants for hundreds of dunums.
They even illustrate the fire:

The only problem is that there is no report from any other source of any fire in the Golan. Not to mention that the reason they give - that Israel just feels like destroying the environment - makes no sense.

One can think of reasons why Syria might want to distract the world with made-up stories of Israeli forest fires, however.