Early yesterday morning, the Syrian military responded to an Israeli air-force attack with an anti-aircraft missile. The missile detonated over southern Israel, leaving debris in a Bedouin village but not causing harm. Ron Ben-Yishai, Yoav Zitun, and Einav Halabi note that, although the missile might have been a failed attempt to shoot down an Israeli plane, there is another explanation:
The Syrian missile fire raises the possibility that the launch was not a mere accidental occurrence but a deliberate signal from Syria that it could launch missiles deep into Israeli territory. The assessment is based on the fact that the attack originated from western Syria, rather than the usual southern [area].
The Syrian president Bashar al-Assad’s recent statements vowing not to tolerate airstrikes on Syrian soil may have emboldened him, particularly considering the internal situation in Israel. Although the Syrians could have detonated the missile in the air before it reached Israel, it appears that the missile disintegrated on its own, without any instruction from the battery operators.
In response to the missile launch, the Israel Air Force carried out an attack on the battery responsible for the incident. In previous instances, Russia supplied replacement batteries to the Syrian army, but this time the delivery of a new battery or its components may be challenging. Russia is currently engaged in the conflict in Ukraine and requires these batteries for its own operations, often utilizing SA-5 [surface-to-air] missiles as long-range surface-to-surface missiles.
Read more on Ynet: https://www.ynetnews.com/article/rjodpiadh