Israel strikes Iranian weapon depots near Damascus using warplanes flying over Lebanon. The fired missiles headed toward areas near the Syrian capital of Damascus late Tuesday. There was no immediate word on casualties. Damascus residents reported sounds of loud explosions.
While Syrian television didn’t identify the planes, Lebanon’s the state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli warplanes were flying at low altitude over parts of southern Lebanon and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said Israeli airstrikes targeted three positions south of Damascus that are arms depots for Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group and Iranian forces.
The reported attack near Damascus is the first since U.S. President Donald Trump announced last week that the U.S. will withdraw all of its 2,000 forces in Syria, a move that will leave control of the oil-rich eastern third of Syria up for grabs.
S-300 UNDER PERFORMS
The strikes hit their targets despite the much-touted S-300 Russian missile defense system. Russia announced it had delivered the S-300 air defense system to Syria in October.
Nearly an hour after the attacks began, Damascus residents could still hear the air defense units firing toward targets in the air.
“The aggression is still ongoing,” said a presenter on state TV, which interrupted its programs to air patriotic songs.
Meanwhile, Israel’s military spokesman unit also reported action, though it did not confirm air attacks. The IDF said in a statement that “it activated an aerial defense system against an anti-aircraft missile launched from Syria.”. The Israeli military reported no damage or injuries.
Israel is widely believed to have been behind a series of airstrikes in the past that mainly targeted Iranian and Hezbollah forces fighting alongside the government in Syria. Tuesday’s attack is the first since a missile assault on the southern outskirts of Damascus on Nov. 29.
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