JERUSALEM, June 6 (UPI) -- Israeli soldiers killed 22 protesters trying to cross from Syria into Israel during Naksa Day demonstrations Sunday, Syrian media reported.
Israeli military officials expressed skepticism about the death toll coming out of Syria -- saying their troops aimed low to avoid inflicting fatal wounds -- but didn't provide their own estimate, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported.
The Jerusalem Post reported that in addition to those killed, Syrian media claimed 225 others had been wounded in the border clashes. The casualties could not be confirmed, the newspaper said.
No Palestinians actually crossed the border Sunday, Haaretz said, a marked contrasts to a May 15 demonstration when hundreds dashed into Israel before being repulsed by Israeli forces.
The Israeli military said most, if not all, of Sunday's casualties happened when a brush fire, apparently ignited by Molotov cocktails hurled by demonstrators, detonated anti-tank mines along the border near Quneitra, Haaretz said.
"The responsibility for the incidents and the casualties falls on those carrying out these provocations, and on all those who encouraged them to act in this way," the Post quoted Defense Minister Ehud Barak as saying.
The border protest marked the anniversary of the 1967 Six Day War that left Israel in control of territories that remain in dispute to this day, a situation that is a major obstacle in reaching a peace agreement in the region.
