Israel increases threat level in the Golan Heights

JERUSALEM, March 1 (UPI) -- The Israeli military has increased the alert level on the Golan Heights and provided heavily armored vehicles for its soldiers, officials said.

The move comes after reports of an Israeli airstrike on the border between Lebanon and Syria, Ynetnews reported Saturday. Military officials say that Global Jihad, which is fighting against the regime of President Bashar Assad in Syria, might fire rockets at Israel.

An improvised explosive device aimed at an Israeli patrol recently damaged a Jeep but caused no injuries to soldiers or bystanders. Patrols in the area are now using heavily armored Hummers instead of the lightly armored Jeeps.

"It's only a matter of time until the next explosive device incident," one official said. "We still don't know who is responsible for the last incident two months ago."