Israeli launches missile attack on Syrian military posts in W. Damascus

DAMASCUS -- Israel launched a missile attack early Tuesday on bases of the Syrian army west of the capital Damascus which were believed to host fighters of the Lebanese military group Hezbollah, according to the Syrian army and a war monitor.

The "Israeli enemy" carried out an aerial attack from the direction of the occupied Syrian Golan Heights at around 4:35 am local time (1:35 GMT) Tuesday, resulting in some material damage, the Syrian army said in a statement, without elaborating.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Israeli attack targeted the Artillery Company of the 121st Brigade of the Syrian Army, which it said is known to host fighters from Hezbollah, causing potential human casualties.

The Britain-based war monitor added that the airstrike served as a warning to Hezbollah and Iran amidst ongoing tensions in the region.

The incident is the first Israeli aerial attack on Syria in the year of 2024. It followed an attack carried out by Iranian-backed groups Monday evening, when missiles were launched toward the occupied Golan Heights from Syrian territories.

In response, Israel retaliated by attacking sites in the countryside of the southern provinces of Daraa and Quneitra. No human casualties were reported.

Director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights Rami Abdul-Rahman said that the areas targeted, including the southwestern countryside of Damascus, western Daraa province, and Quneitra province, are important operation zones for Hezbollah and local resistance forces against Israel.

In 2023 alone, Israel conducted a total of 76 airstrikes on Syrian territories, according to the observatory.

Israel has recently increased its attacks on Syrian targets in tandem with its military campaign in the Gaza Strip.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry on Friday condemned the Israeli attacks and urged decisive measures from the United Nations Security Council to put an end to these assaults.

Syria has been engulfed in an over 12-year civil war, with the government forces of President Bashar al-Assad, backed by Russia and Iran, fighting against various opposition groups.

Israel, on the other hand, has a long-standing policy of preventing Iran from establishing a military presence in Syria by repeatedly conducting airstrikes to destroy alleged Iranian weapons supplies.