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Syrian media: Israeli missile strike intercepted by air defenses

SANA news agency reported that the Syrian army’s air defenses intercepted “hostile missiles coming from the occupied lands.”

By Aryeh Savir, TPS

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) carried out a strike in Syria on Sunday night, the state’s media reported.

The SANA news agency reported that the Syrian army’s air defenses intercepted “hostile missiles coming from the occupied lands.”

The report said that one of the missiles fell in the Aqraba region in Damascus’ countryside.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), which has assets inside Syria, recorded at least three explosions that rocked the areas around Damascus on Sunday night.

The missiles, “believed to be Israeli,” hit Syrian military sites and those of Iranian militias.

No additional verifiable details were available, but there are reports of casualties as a result of the attack, including several dead.

Some reports indicate that weapons storage sites were hit, including those housing Iranian drones and missiles.

As in most previous incidents, the IDF has remained silent and has not commented on the reports.

In August, the IAF struck Iranian Quds Force operatives and Shiite militia targets in the town of Aqraba, situated south-east of Damascus.

The Iranian-led forces were planning to launch armed drones at Israeli targets in the coming days, the IDF had said.

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The IAF has carried out thousands of attacks to thwart the Iranian entrenchment in the war-torn country, including more than 17 recorded Israeli attacks in 2019, the latest of which occurred on November 20 when several Israeli missiles hit sites on the southern and southwestern outskirts of Damascus.

Strikes against targets in Syria reportedly carried out by Israel are usually meant to prevent the transfer of advanced weapons from Iran through Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon, or to thwart Iran’s military buildup in the country, and especially on Syria’s border with Israel.

Iran uses its positions in Syria to transfer weapons and infrastructure to its terror proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah, while attempting to establish another military front against Israel from the Syrian Golan Heights.

Iran’s military buildup in Syria remains a red line for Israel.