This past weekend saw for the first time Israel’s vaunted Iron Dome anti-missile defense system go into action against Syrian missiles on the Golan Heights.

The Iron Dome battery recently redeployed to the Golan successfully intercepted two rockets in Syrian airspace on Friday.

Over the past week, a number of errant mortar shells from Syria’s bloody civil war have landed in Israeli territory, prompting fierce aerial reprisals. During one of those retaliatory missions, the Syrian army fired ground-to-air missiles at Israeli jets, sparking fears of a major escalation.

It is hoped that with the Iron Dome intercepting Syrian artillery before it reaches Israel, reprisals will become less necessary, thereby reducing the risk of an explosion on Israel’s northern border.