Smoke from mortar shelling rises above the Golan Heights. Photo: Screenshot

The civil war in Syria spilled over on Tuesday into Israel, where at least 25 mortar shells were recovered in bombardments, Ynet reported, updating early reports from Israel’s Channel 2, both citing the IDF.

Ynet said that as the shelling increased over the day from 10 mortars by midday to 25 by evening, the IDF lodged a formal complaint with the UNDOF peacekeeping force.

Fighting was centered around several villages on the Israel-Syrian border. One shell landed near the Northern Golan town of Aloni Bashan and another fell in an open area near Ein Zivan, Channel 2 said.

A spokeswoman for the Golan Regional Council said the shelling, smoke plumes and fire began at 6AM and continued all morning, but no Israelis were harmed because residents in the region know which areas along the border must be avoided.

Ronen Gilboa, a local emergency services team leader said, “We see the smoke and everything, and there was also a small fire.”

“We continue as usual, and tourism and agriculture are working normally,” he said, adding, “We have heard these explosions for almost three years.”

The video report from Israel Channel 2 can be viewed below: