The Syrian army has taken control of a UN-monitored crossing in the Golan Heights that had been overrun by rebel forces, Israeli military sources say.
Tanks and armoured vehicles were used in the fighting at Quneitra, near Israeli-held territory.
Austria has said it will withdraw its peacekeepers from the Golan Heights because of the fighting....
The involvement of Hezbollah and the upsurge of fighting near the ceasefire line with Israel in the Golan have both raised fears that the conflict could spread across Syria's borders.
Rebels seized the crossing near the town of Quneitra earlier on Thursday, with explosions and heavy shelling rocking the area.
But an Israeli military source said Syrian government forces retook the symbolically significant position hours later, and that it was now relatively quiet in the area..
Two UN peacekeepers were wounded as fighting raged around the crossing and Quneitra.
Austria said it would withdraw its soldiers because the threat had "reached an unacceptable level".
Austrian troops make up more than a third of the more than 900-strong UN force monitoring the demilitarised zone and Quneitra - the only open crossing between Syria and the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights.
Israel expressed regret at Austria's decision, and said it hoped it would not lead to "further escalation" in the region.
The UN said the withdrawal of Austrian troops would affect the mission's operational capacity and it would look for replacements.
Croatia, Canada and Japan had already withdrawn their contingents in the Golan because of the conflict in Syria.........
From TheGuardianUK:
Israel has reacted angrily to Austria's decision to withdraw its peacekeeping forces from the Golan Heights, saying the move has undermined the authority of the United Nations as the Syrian civil war threatens to spill over the border into Israel.
Israeli officials say the withdrawal of Austrian troops from the peacekeeping force monitoring the demilitarised border area following the injury of a Filipino soldier during clashes on Thursday threatened the role of the UN Security Council in any future negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
In a statement issued late on Thursday afternoon, Austria announced its decision to remove all 380 of its troops from the 1,000-strong force on the Israel-Syrian border due to the "continuing deterioration of the situation in the area"...........
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