2011 Syrian Civil War

SPIKE / Tamuz in the 2011 Syrian Civil War

Israeli forces used Tamuz, the Israeli-service SPIKE NLOS lineage, for precision return fire from the Golan Heights against Syrian positions after cross-border mortar and gunfire incidents in 2012-2013.

Weapon profileSPIKE anti-tank guided-missile family
SideIsraelRoleLong-Range Strike
SPIKE anti-tank guided-missile family, Anti-tank guided missile family, Infantry Weapons - 2011 Syrian Civil War
Image source: Wikimedia First SPIKE NLOS in U.S. CENTCOM photo

Evidence Map

ClaimSources
The IDF used Tamuz in 2012-2013 in response to Syrian fire at Israeli patrols and military posts along the Golan Heights border.

Sources: Defense Update Tamuz EO Guided Missile

On 11 November 2012, the IDF fired an anti-tank missile, identified by some sources as Tammuz, near a Syrian mortar battery after mortar fire landed near an Israeli post.

Sources: Times of Israel November 2012 Warning Shot

On 24 March 2013, Israeli forces launched a Tamuz-guided anti-tank missile that destroyed a Syrian machine-gun position after fire at an Israeli patrol vehicle.

Sources: Washington Post Golan Tamuz March 2013

On 17 August 2013, the IDF fired a Tamuz missile at a Syrian military post after mortar fire from Syria, reportedly destroying a Syrian cannon.

Sources: Times of Israel August 2013 Tamuz Strike

The documented use was Israeli cross-border precision return fire from the Golan Heights; the public sources used here do not establish Syrian-party possession or a complete launch count.

Sources: Defense Update Tamuz EO Guided Missile, Times of Israel November 2012 Warning Shot, Washington Post Golan Tamuz March 2013, Times of Israel August 2013 Tamuz Strike

Timeline

SPIKE anti-tank guided-missile family In 2011 Syrian Civil War

  1. Warning shot after mortar fire

    The IDF fired an anti-tank missile, identified by some sources as a Tammuz, near a Syrian mortar battery after a mortar shell landed near an Israeli army post in the eastern Golan Heights.

    Sources: Times of Israel November 2012 Warning Shot

  2. Machine-gun position destroyed

    Israeli forces launched a Tamuz-guided anti-tank missile after fire at an Israeli patrol vehicle, destroying a Syrian machine-gun position identified as the source of fire.

    Sources: Washington Post Golan Tamuz March 2013

  3. Tamuz strike after mortar spillover

    The IDF fired a Tamuz missile at a Syrian military post after mortar fire from Syria, and The Times of Israel reported that the missile destroyed a Syrian cannon.

    Sources: Times of Israel August 2013 Tamuz Strike

Documented Use

Direct proof of use

Defense Update identifies Tamuz as a Rafael beyond-line-of-sight precision guided weapon fielded by the Israeli Artillery Corps and describes it as the lineage that evolved into the SPIKE family, with SPIKE NLOS as an advanced export version. The same account says the IDF used Tamuz in 2012-2013 in response to sporadic Syrian fire at Israeli patrols and military posts along the Golan Heights border.

Contemporary reports document specific launches. On 24 March 2013, The Washington Post reported that Israeli forces launched a Tamuz-guided anti-tank missile after shots were fired at an Israeli patrol vehicle, destroying a Syrian machine-gun position identified as the source of fire.

Sources: Defense Update Tamuz EO Guided Missile, Washington Post Golan Tamuz March 2013

Timeline

The public sequence begins in November 2012, when The Times of Israel reported that the IDF fired an anti-tank missile, identified by some sources as a Tammuz, as a warning shot near a Syrian mortar battery after a mortar shell landed near an Israeli army post in the eastern Golan Heights.

The March 2013 launch was more direct: reporting said the missile destroyed a Syrian machine-gun position after fire hit or threatened Israeli patrol vehicles. In August 2013, The Times of Israel reported another Tamuz missile launch after mortar fire from Syria, saying the missile destroyed a Syrian cannon that had fired artillery at Israel.

Sources: Times of Israel November 2012 Warning Shot, Washington Post Golan Tamuz March 2013, Times of Israel August 2013 Tamuz Strike

Operational role

In this conflict record, Tamuz appears as an Israeli standoff precision-fire system used from the Israeli-held Golan Heights rather than as a weapon transferred to Syrian parties. The documented targets were Syrian firing positions or posts linked by Israeli reporting to cross-border mortar, gunfire, or artillery spillover from the Syrian Civil War.

The sources support a limited retaliation and warning role. They do not establish a broad Israeli Tamuz campaign inside Syria, a complete launch count, or Syrian opposition use of the system.

Sources: Defense Update Tamuz EO Guided Missile, Times of Israel November 2012 Warning Shot, Washington Post Golan Tamuz March 2013, Times of Israel August 2013 Tamuz Strike

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Sources