Israel attacks Iranian targets near Damascus, several killed

The reported air strike marks the third Israeli attack on Iranian assets in Syria in April.

By World Israel News Staff

An Israeli airstrike in the early hours of Wednesday morning killed four Syrian soldiers and wounded three near Damascus, the Syrian Defense Ministry said.

The state-owned SANA news agency reported that surface-to-air missiles were launched from the northern Israeli city of Tiberias. The report claimed that most of them were shot down by Syrian air defense.

“Our air defenses confronted an Israeli aggression over the outskirts of Damascus,” SANA reported.

International and third-party sources could not verify the information. In line with longstanding policy, the Israeli air force did not confirm nor deny that the strikes occurred.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Israeli military had targeted a weapons depot and other assets linked to Iranian-backed militias in the country.

The strike occurred just hours after a number of flight-tracking websites noted that an Iranian plane flew from Tehran to Damascus, sparking speculation that it was smuggling weapons.

Wednesday’s strikes marked the third time that Israel has reportedly bombed Iranian assets in Syria this month.

On Tuesday, an Israeli drone crashed while flying over Syria. The Israeli air force said in a statement that there was no risk of a data leak posed by the downed UAV.

The reason for the crash is currently under investigation.

Syria’s air has largely been controlled by Russia since the onset of the Syrian civil war. In February 2022, Russia chastised Israel for carrying out air strikes in the embattled country.

“Israel’s continuing strikes against targets inside Syria cause deep concern. They are a crude violation of Syria’s sovereignty and may trigger a sharp escalation of tensions,” said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

Russia “systematically and resolutely opposes attempts to turn Syria into a scene of armed confrontation between third countries,” said Zakharova.

“Once again we are insistently calling upon the Israeli side to refrain from such use of force.”