Israel reportedly launched airstrikes against military targets in Syria last night, after warplanes flew low over Lebanon, intimidating local residents.
Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) has announced an arms source blaming Israeli “attack” for launching a “missile warrant” from the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli to Masyaf , in the Hama region of Syria.
The source said most of the missiles were imported by Syrian air defenses, but the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based war analyst, said a warehouse and missile factories had been smashed. destruction, with “at least” six casualties.
Explosions were reported after midnight in the area around Masyaf, northwest of Homs, which is an important military area for the presidency of President Bashar al-Assad, which houses a military academy and a scientific research center belief used to create chemical weapons.
The Israeli military has said it would not comment on foreign media reports, but has reportedly launched dozens of attacks against Iranian militias and other targets in Syria in recent years, with jets regularly crossing Lebanon’s airspace.
Witnesses said the Christmas Eve flights were higher than normal, however, frightening Beirut residents who are still polluted by the August 4 explosion at the city’s port that killed more is 200 people.
The catastrophic explosion, which destroyed large areas of the city, was caused after a fire to a large source of ammonium nitrate.
Tamara Qiblawi, a CNN producer based in the Lebanese capital, shared a video apparently showing “illegal transmissions” of four Israeli jets.
“You often hear them here but you rarely see them,” she said. “Those were very low. Shaking houses. Cats used to go out. Chills down people’s spikes. “
Citing “reliable sources”, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the “Israeli strikes were aimed at the military positions of Iranian forces and militias.
Syrian militants saw ambulances running to the site of the explosions and all the dead were foreign paramilitaries loyal to President Assad, he said.
One attack also focused on the research center, where ground attack missiles have been developed and stored, and which have been hit several times by Israeli strikes in recent years, the Observatory said. The latest attack in June killed nine people, including four Syrians.
The U.S. military has previously said that sarin gas, a deadly lethal agent, was being developed at the facility, which Syrian authorities have denied.
According to a SANA report, air defenders hit “most” missiles before reaching their target.
“Our air defenses captured Israel’s attack on the Masyaf area,” he said.