Israel launches air strikes on Iran-linked targets in Syria

The Israeli military said on Wednesday that it had launched air strikes on targets in Syria belonging to the Iranian Quds force and the Syrian military.

Avichay Adraee, a spokesman of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), said that the airstrikes targeted military targets, warehouses, headquarters and military complexes.

The IDF said it made the decision to carry out air strikes after finding “improvised” explosive devices along the frontier in Israel-controlled Golan Heights.

Israeli forces claimed the explosives were placed on the Israeli side of the Alpha line by a “Syrian squad led by Iranian forces.”

Israel has launched numerous strikes on Iran-linked military targets in Syria over the years, but an acknowledgement of such operations is rare by Israel. Iran is a key ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

According to Syria’s state news agency, SANA, three Syrian military personnel were killed and one was injured by the strike. Quoting a Syrian military source, SANA called the attack “Israeli aggression.”

Early on Wednesday, SANA had reported that Syrian air defenses had intercepted the Israeli air strikes over the capital city of Damascus.