Syria blames Israel for deadly airstrike near Damascus

Iranian drone factory among the reported targets.

By David Hellerman, World Israel News

Syria blamed Israel for missile strikes near Damascus on Thursday night.

Syria’s state-controlled SANA news agency reported three soldiers were killed and another seven people were injured. It also claimed that the Syrian military shot down a number of the missiles.

Opposition news sites reported that a warehouse belonging to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and a drone factory — both south of the capital — were among the sites targeted.

Other unconfirmed reports said that Hezbollah operatives were among the injured.

In a rare Israeli confirmation, Diaspora Affairs Minister Nachman Shai told Israel’s Kan Reshet Bet radio station on Friday morning, “The IDF operated in Syria last night. We continue to protect our security interests.”

Israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes in Syria to prevent Iran and its proxies from entrenching themselves and transferring weapons. Jerusalem rarely acknowledges specific attacks, but officials have confirmed the strikes in a general way.

In June, an Israeli strike knocked Damascus International Airport out of service for two weeks after Israel accused Iran of smuggling advanced missile components for Hezbollah into Syria on civilian flights. The destroyed terminals were said to have been designated as VIP areas for Iranian personnel and for storing the smuggled technology.