By Kaamil Ahmed

JERUSALEM

Israeli forces in the occupied Golan Heights exchanged fire with gunmen based in Syria, an Israeli army statement said Sunday.

The military said they targeted gunmen linked to the Daesh militant group after mortar shells were fired from Syrian territory.

An Israeli military spokesperson tweeted that four militants using a vehicle with a mounted weapon were killed.

He also confirmed media reports that an Israeli unit was preparing for an "ambush against potential threats."

The Times of Israel reported the army's Golani unit had crossed the security fence but remained within the Israeli-controlled part of the Golan Heights.

Israel has occupied the majority of Syria’s Golan Heights since the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, the Israeli army has occasionally hit targets within Syria, especially when shells have fallen inside the Golan Heights, whether intentionally or by mistake.