Israeli missile 'intercepts Syrian drone' for second time this week

Israel fired a second Patriot missile this week at an unmanned aircraft that approached the country's border from Syria, the military said on Friday. 

The defence system was fired at a Syrian drone "flying over the demilitarised zone," adding that it was "most likely intercepted," the military said.

Israel has recently reiterated it expects the Syrian regime and Iranian allies to honour a 1974 agreement that sets out a demilitarised zone along the border.

The first Patriot missile this week was fired on Wednesday, after a drone travelled about 6 miles inside Israeli territory. That incident came as Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was in Moscow discussing Syria and Iran.

Israel's main concern is preventing its arch-rival Iran, as well as its Lebanese ally Hizballah, from establishing a permanent foothold inside Syria. 

The Israeli military also targeted Syrian military positions Thursday in response.

Last month, Israel fired a missile at a drone that approached its airspace near the Syrian frontier, and in February it shot down what it said was an Iranian drone that entered its airspace. It bombed Iranian targets in Syria in response.

In recent weeks, Israel's military has been on high alert over the Syrian regime's offensive in the southern and southwestern parts of the country.  

Israel seized a large swathe of the neighbouring Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed it. The Israeli-occupied Golan Heights has never been recognised by the international community. 

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