The Israeli army moved overnight Tuesday to restore deterrence along the country’s border with Syria, launching air strikes against multiple Syrian army installations after a steady stream of attacks against Israeli military personnel in March culminated on Tuesday in a roadside bombing that injured four soldiers.

This month had already seen three additional violent incidents along the Israeli-Lebanese and Israeli-Syrian borders – including rocket attacks on Israeli territory and the explosion of another bomb placed deep in Israeli territory – originating in regime- or Hezbollah-controlled Syrian territory. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared after the strikes that “Syrian elements not only allowed but also cooperated in the attacks on our forces” – analysis echoed by top Israeli analysts – and emphasized that the Israeli actions were designed to reestablish calm along Israel’s northern border.

Coverage coming out of Israel converged on Jerusalem’s commitment to preventing escalation. Veteran Israeli military correspondent Amos Harel had noted even before Israel’s overnight action that it was “no longer an exaggeration to speak of a resurgent northern front.”

If the current escalation continues, Israel is liable to be drawn into a more forceful response. On Tuesday the IDF made do with artillery fire into Syrian territory, near the area in which the incident occurred. But the IDF has a lot more leeway to act, and it’s possible that it will have to set a higher price tag for attacks from the Syrian border.

Even if the exact identity of those responsible for these attacks is not clear, what is clear is that these incidents are no coincidence. The Assad camp – the regime, Hezbollah, and militias identified with Syrian President Bashar Assad – are responsible for a series of attacks that were aimed at Israel.

Ben Caspit, another veteran Israeli journalist, provided an extensive description of the Israeli diplomatic-security meeting that preceded the Israeli strikes, and concluded that Israel has “drawn up a new map of red lines and a balance of terror and deterrence vis-a-vis Assad and Hezbollah.”

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