Syria: Weeks after deadly earthquake, Israeli strikes residential building in Damascus; 15 dead

By Team Newsable | First Published Feb 19, 2023, 1:45 PM IST

Damascus was last attacked on January 2, when the Syrian army reported that Israel's military fired missiles toward the international airport of Syria's capital, putting it out of service and killing two soldiers and wounding two others.

Weeks after a deadly earthquake strikes Syria, Israeli airstrikes targeted a residential neighbourhood in central Damascus early Sunday. It is reportedly said that as many as 15 people have been killed and wounded. Loud explosions were heard over the capital around 12:30 am local time and the Syrian air defences were "confronting hostile targets in the sky around Damascus."

Meanwhile, there was no immediate statement from Israel on the attack. Israeli airstrikes frequently target sites in the vicinity of Damascus. The Saturday night strikes were the first since a devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Turkey and Syria on February 6.

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In recent years, it can be seen that Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of Syria, but rarely acknowledges or discusses the operations.

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However, Israel has acknowledged that it targets bases of Iran-allied militant groups, such as Lebanon's Hezbollah, which has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces.

The Israeli strikes come amid a wider shadow war between Israel and Iran. The attacks on airports in Damascus and Aleppo were over fears they were being used to funnel Iranian weaponry into the country.

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