and further ground clashes erupted in the early hours, accompanied by air-strikes by the Syrian Air Force as well. Later in the day, shelling between both sides took place and in the evening a major government counter-attack retook all remaining territory that the rebel forces had captured during the offensive. The Syrian Army and its allies then attempted to advance westwards into rebel-held areas, but reported that they abandoned their advance when the Israeli Air Force raided their positions at Al-Samdaniyah Al-Sharqiyah. According to Israel, the attack was in retaliation for a stray mortar shell hitting their territory – the 16th time stray fire from Syria struck Israeli territory in the week – and that they were firing back at the source of the fire. The next morning, the rebels hit Madinat al-Baath with a barrage of TOW anti-tank missiles in an attempt to restart their offensive. On 1 July, the Syrian Army, supported by the National Defence Forces, continued their counter-attack, reporting they had recaptured the quarries area west of Baath City and thus reversing all rebel gains during the offensive. During the fighting, two stray artillery rounds hit the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, prompting Israeli forces to target the Syrian government positions for the fifth time, targeting an artillery position they said was the source of the firing. A four-day unilateral ceasefire was announced by the Syrian Army to take place between midday 2 July and midnight on 6 July. Although exchange of fire between Israel and Syria largely ceased, clashes renewed near Baath City on 3 July, with Israeli helicopters attacking Syrian Army positions according to Syrian military sources. Aftermath On 8 July, the Syrian Army reported that, along with its allies, it had captured several points near Al-Samdaniyah Al-Gharbiyah. As a precursor to Astana 5 peace talks, on 9 July 2017, at 0900 GMT, an American-Russian-Jordanian brokered ceasefire commenced. Besides minor violations from all sides involved, including machine gun fire on an Irish base on the Golan Heights, the ceasefire held though mid-July. The Southern Front boycotted the Astana 5 talks. On 14 July, according to pro-government media, opposition groups in the "Death over Humiliation" operations room, including HTS and FSA groups participating in the Quneitra, offensive rejected the ceasefire, with clashes resuming across Southern Syria. In early August, rebel sources reported that Russian forces were replacing government troops in Daraa and Quneitra, while pro-government sources reported