American Doctor At Israel Hospital Injured By Gunfire From Syria
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JERUSALEM (JTA) — An American doctor working in an Israeli field hospital in the Golan Heights was injured by gunfire from Syria.
The doctor, who was not named, was treating Syrians wounded in the country’s long-running civil war as part of the Israel Defense Forces’ Operation Good Neighbor when he was injured on Tuesday evening, according to the IDF.
The doctor was treated at the scene. The field hospital is located adjacent to the Syrian border.
As a result of the shots fired, one foreign staff member was lightly injured. The incident is being investigated & was possibly stray fire.
— IDF (@IDFSpokesperson) October 10, 2017
The gunfire is believed to be accidental spillover from fighting in the civil war, though the incident is under investigation, according to the IDF. Dozens of mortar and gunfire from Syria has landed on Israel, most in the Golan Heights, during the fighting. The IDF has responded to most of these incidents with return fire.
Over 4,000 people have been brought to Israel to receive medical treatment, among them hundreds of children, the IDF said. The military also transfers medicine, supplies and equipment, as well as food to Syrians across the border.
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