Israeli Strikes Cause Casualties Among Iran-Backed Forces In Syria

Syria says Israel launched several missiles from the Golan Heights at targets around Damascus, causing several casualties and material damage.

According to the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights (SOHR), a war monitor, the attacks in the early hours of Thursday, targeted posts and weapons warehouses of Iran-backed militias in the vicinity of Damascus international airport.

There were also reports of missile attacks in areas around the border province of Quneitra on Wednesday, where Israel allegedly fired surface-to-surface missiles, causing material damage to an observation post and a building.

Iran International reported earlier this month that Iran-backed militias are setting up settlement along the Israeli border, to be used for attacks against Israel.

Some other missiles targeted the air-defense system in areas along Al-Keswah and Al-Syidah Zaynab districts in south of Damascus. The official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said several explosions were seen over the skies of the capital and its outskirts as Syria’s air defenses intercepted some of the strikes.

Syria’s state media said three people were killed in the attacks while SOHR put the number of casualties at six, saying the attacks killed two members of the Syrian forces and four members of Iran-backed militias, whose nationalities remain unknown.

In a rare statement earlier in February, the Israeli army acknowledged attacks inside Syria, saying it struck Syrian facilities used in targeting Israeli aircraft, including a radar and anti-aircraft batteries.

Israel has launched hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of Syria mostly since 2017, but it rarely acknowledges or discusses such operations.