Teen hurt by debris from Patriot missile fired at drone in Golan

Falling fragments of projectile lightly injure girl out hiking, as 2 IDF anti-aircraft missiles fired at UAV from Syria miss target

Ilan Ben Zion is an AFP reporter and a former news editor at The Times of Israel.

An IDF helicopter arrives to evacuate wounded soldiers after an accidental grenade blast in the Golan Heights on July 17, 2016 (United Hatzalah)
An IDF helicopter arrives to evacuate wounded soldiers after an accidental grenade blast in the Golan Heights on July 17, 2016 (United Hatzalah)

A 14-year-old girl was lightly hurt Sunday when hit by debris from a Patriot missile fired by the IDF at a Syrian drone over the Golan Heights.

The teen was hospitalized at Safed’s Ziv Medical Center with minor injuries to her leg, which were apparently inflicted by falling shrapnel near Kibbutz Ayelet Hashachar in the Golan Heights.

The girl, a Jerusalem resident, was taking part in a hiking trip and was brought to the hospital by her tour guide.

She was injured when Israel fired two anti-aircraft missiles at an unmanned aerial vehicle that crossed into its airspace from Syria on Sunday afternoon.

The IDF said in a statement that neither of the two Patriot missiles launched managed to hit the drone, which returned to Syrian airspace.

The Israeli Air Force scrambled fighter jets in the Golan Heights following the drone launch, the Ynet news website reported.

The launches triggered air raid alarms across northern Israel. No rockets were fired into Israeli territory, however.

Israel has shot down drone and fighter aircraft that flew near the border with Syria in the Golan Heights several times in recent years. The IDF downed a drone in August 2014 and a Syrian fighter aircraft in September of the same year.

A puff of smoke seen from northern Israel after a Patriot missile was shot at a UAV from Syria on July 17, 2016. (screen capture: Channel 2/Twitter)
A puff of smoke seen from northern Israel after a Patriot missile was shot at a UAV from Syria on July 17, 2016. (screen capture: Channel 2/Twitter)

Most Popular
read more:
If you’d like to comment, join
The Times of Israel Community.
Join The Times of Israel Community
Commenting is available for paying members of The Times of Israel Community only. Please join our Community to comment and enjoy other Community benefits.
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Confirm Mail
Thank you! Now check your email
You are now a member of The Times of Israel Community! We sent you an email with a login link to . Once you're set up, you can start enjoying Community benefits and commenting.