One Syrian soldier is dead and seven others are wounded after Israel carried out airstrikes against military stations in the Golan Heights plateau on Wednesday.
The strike was carried out in retaliation for a roadside bombing in the plateau on Tuesday that injured four Israeli soldiers, the Associated Press reported.
Israeli warplanes targeted several "strategic posts" of the Syrian military near the villages Kom and Nouriyeh, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in Great Britain, the AP reported.
The airstrikes targeted a Syrian army headquarters, training facility and artillery batteries. Wednesday's attacks are the most violent on the plateau since the conflict in Syria began.
Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said Syrian President Bashar Assad would "regret his actions" if he continues to attack his forces.
"Our policy is clear. We hurt those who hurt us," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an announcement to his cabinet, according to Reuters. "Syrian elements not only allowed but also cooperated in the attacks on our forces."
Israel has expressed concern over the possibility of the country being targeted during Syria's civil war, which is now in its third year, Reuters reported.
"We hold the Assad regime responsible for what happens in his territory and if it continues to collaborate with terrorists striving to hurt Israel, then we will keep on exacting a heavy price from it," Yaalon said according to Reuters.
At the same time, Syria's army said the airstrikes were a "desperate attempt to escalate and worsen the situation," AP reported. The army said Israel wants to distract forces in Damascus from making advances in battle. Last week, Syrian forces captured an important rebel post near the border with Lebanon.
Syria's army also said that further attacks would only cause instability in the Middle East.
"Repeating such hostile acts (airstrikes) would endanger the security and stability of the region and make it open to all possibilities," the army said in a statement obtained by the AP.
