Israel: Misfired shots fired in nearby Syrian civil war spark fire in Golan Heights minefield

JERUSALEM – The Israeli military says a stray bullet from fighting in nearby Syria has set off a land mine in the Golan Heights, sparking a fire.

The military says firefighters extinguished the blaze Tuesday. He said it was set off by misdirected gunfire from Syria.

Yoram Levy, a spokesman for the fire and rescue service, said a small fire burned on a minefield.

Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war. Some parts are still littered with land mines.

The border between the two countries has been largely quiet since a 1974 armistice agreement, but Israel is concerned that fighting in Syria's civil war could spill across. Recently, Syrian tanks and shells have strayed over the frontier.