{"id":4121,"date":"2023-02-19T15:57:30","date_gmt":"2023-02-19T15:57:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=4121"},"modified":"2023-03-23T18:40:39","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T18:40:39","slug":"five-killed-in-israeli-airstrike-in-damascus-syrian-state-media","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/analysis\/defense\/terrorism\/five-killed-in-israeli-airstrike-in-damascus-syrian-state-media\/2023\/02\/19\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Five killed in Israeli airstrike in Damascus :Syrian state media"},"content":{"rendered":"

BEIRUT<\/span> (AFP)<\/span> \u2014<\/span> Israeli<\/span> airstrikes<\/span> targeted<\/span> a<\/span> residential<\/span> neighborhood<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> Syrian<\/span> capital<\/span> of<\/span> Damascus<\/span> early<\/span> Sunday,<\/span> killing<\/span> at<\/span> least<\/span> five<\/span> people<\/span> and<\/span> wounding<\/span> 15,<\/span> Syrian<\/span> state<\/span> news<\/span> reported.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Loud<\/span> explosions<\/span> were<\/span> heard<\/span> over<\/span> a<\/span> central<\/span> area<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> capital<\/span> around<\/span> 12:<\/span>
\n<\/span>30<\/span> a.m.<\/span> local<\/span> time,<\/span> and<\/span> SANA<\/span> reported<\/span> that<\/span> Syrian<\/span> air<\/span> defenses<\/span> were<\/span> \u201cconfronting<\/span> hostile<\/span> targets<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> sky<\/span> around<\/span> Damascus.\u201d<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Syrian<\/span> state<\/span> media<\/span> agency<\/span> SANA,<\/span> citing<\/span> a<\/span> military<\/span> source,<\/span> reported<\/span> that<\/span> five<\/span> people<\/span> had<\/span> been<\/span> killed,<\/span> among<\/span> them<\/span> a<\/span> soldier,<\/span> and<\/span> 15<\/span> civilians<\/span> wounded,<\/span> along<\/span> with<\/span> \u201cdestruction<\/span> of<\/span> a<\/span> number<\/span> of<\/span> residential<\/span> buildings.\u201d<\/span> The<\/span> news<\/span> agency<\/span> also<\/span> reported<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> strikes<\/span> had<\/span> damaged<\/span> buildings<\/span> connected<\/span> to<\/span> a<\/span> medieval<\/span> citadel<\/span> in<\/span> central<\/span> Damascus<\/span> and<\/span> an<\/span> applied<\/span> arts<\/span> institute<\/span> housed<\/span> there.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Syrian<\/span> Observatory<\/span> for<\/span> Human<\/span> Rights,<\/span> a<\/span> U.K.-based<\/span> war<\/span> monitor,<\/span> reported<\/span> that<\/span> 15<\/span> people,<\/span> including<\/span> a<\/span> woman,<\/span> were<\/span> killed<\/span> in<\/span> strikes<\/span> targeting<\/span> sites<\/span> connected<\/span> with<\/span> Iranian<\/span> militias<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> Lebanese<\/span> militant<\/span> group<\/span> Hezbollah.<\/span> They<\/span> took<\/span> place<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> Damascus<\/span> countryside<\/span> and<\/span> on<\/span> an<\/span> Iranian<\/span> school<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> neighborhood<\/span> of<\/span> Kafr<\/span> Sousa<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> capital,<\/span> it<\/span> said.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Samer<\/span> Abdo,<\/span> an<\/span> engineer<\/span> living<\/span> in<\/span> an<\/span> apartment<\/span> building<\/span> that<\/span> was<\/span> struck<\/span> in<\/span> Kafr<\/span> Sousa<\/span> on<\/span> an<\/span> upscale<\/span> residential<\/span> street,<\/span> was<\/span> picking<\/span> through<\/span> shattered<\/span> glass<\/span> and<\/span> broken<\/span> wood<\/span> in<\/span> his<\/span> apartment<\/span> Sunday<\/span> morning.<\/span> Abdo<\/span> told<\/span> the<\/span> Associated<\/span> Press<\/span> news<\/span> agency<\/span> that<\/span> his<\/span> family<\/span> woke<\/span> up<\/span> in<\/span> fear<\/span> when<\/span> the<\/span> building<\/span> shook.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Archaeological<\/span> Museum<\/span> Director<\/span> Mohammad<\/span> Awad<\/span> told<\/span> his<\/span> Associated<\/span> Press<\/span> news<\/span> agency<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> damaged<\/span> buildings<\/span> around<\/span> the<\/span> Damascus<\/span> citadel<\/span> are<\/span> arts<\/span> and<\/span> cultural<\/span> institutions<\/span> and<\/span> administrative<\/span> offices<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> citadel.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>There<\/span> was<\/span> no<\/span> immediate<\/span> statement<\/span> from<\/span> Israel<\/span> regarding<\/span> the<\/span> attack.<\/span> A<\/span> spokesman<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> Israeli<\/span> military<\/span> declined<\/span> to<\/span> comment.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Officials<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> Iran-backed<\/span> group<\/span> denied<\/span> media<\/span> reports<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> Kafr<\/span> Sousa<\/span> attack<\/span> was<\/span> aimed<\/span> at<\/span> Iranian<\/span> or<\/span> Palestinian<\/span> officials.<\/span> The<\/span> strike<\/span> hit<\/span> a<\/span> parking<\/span> lot<\/span> under<\/span> the<\/span> building<\/span> and<\/span> killed<\/span> 10<\/span> civilians<\/span> and<\/span> soldiers,<\/span> all<\/span> of<\/span> them<\/span> Syrians,<\/span> he<\/span> said.<\/span> Denied.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> officer<\/span> spoke<\/span> on<\/span> condition<\/span> of<\/span> anonymity<\/span> because<\/span> he<\/span> was<\/span> not<\/span> authorized<\/span> to<\/span> speak<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> media.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Israeli<\/span> airstrikes<\/span> often<\/span> target<\/span> the<\/span> suburbs<\/span> of<\/span> Damascus,<\/span> but<\/span> rarely<\/span> residential<\/span> areas<\/span> within<\/span> the<\/span> city.<\/span> Saturday<\/span> night’s<\/span> strike<\/span> was<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> since<\/span> the<\/span> devastating<\/span> magnitude<\/span> 7.8<\/span> earthquake<\/span> that<\/span> struck<\/span> Turkey<\/span> and<\/span> Syria<\/span> on<\/span> February<\/span> 27.<\/span> 6.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Syrian<\/span> Ministry<\/span> of<\/span> Foreign<\/span> Affairs<\/span> has<\/span> condemned<\/span> the<\/span> attack,<\/span> which<\/span> occurred<\/span> “when<\/span> Syria<\/span> was<\/span> healing<\/span> its<\/span> wounds,<\/span> burying<\/span> its<\/span> martyrs,<\/span> receiving<\/span> condolences,<\/span> compassion<\/span> and<\/span> international<\/span> humanitarian<\/span> assistance<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> face<\/span> of<\/span> a<\/span> devastating<\/span> earthquake.”<\/span> called<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> UN<\/span> Security<\/span> Council<\/span> to<\/span> condemn<\/span> him.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> last<\/span> reported<\/span> attack<\/span> on<\/span> Damascus<\/span> was<\/span> on<\/span> January<\/span> 2,<\/span> when<\/span> Israeli<\/span> forces<\/span> fired<\/span> rockets<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> Syrian<\/span> capital’s<\/span> international<\/span> airport<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> early<\/span> hours<\/span> of<\/span> Monday<\/span> morning,<\/span> rendering<\/span> it<\/span> inoperable.<\/span> He<\/span> reported<\/span> that<\/span> two<\/span> soldiers<\/span> were<\/span> killed<\/span> and<\/span> two<\/span> of<\/span> his<\/span> others<\/span> were<\/span> wounded.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Israel<\/span> has<\/span> carried<\/span> out<\/span> hundreds<\/span> of<\/span> strikes<\/span> against<\/span> government-controlled<\/span> parts<\/span> of<\/span> Syria<\/span> in<\/span> recent<\/span> years,<\/span> but<\/span> its<\/span> operations<\/span> are<\/span> rarely<\/span> acknowledged<\/span> or<\/span> discussed.<\/span> But<\/span> Israel<\/span> is<\/span> targeting<\/span> bases<\/span> of<\/span> militant<\/span> groups<\/span> allied<\/span> with<\/span> Iran,<\/span> including<\/span> Lebanon’s<\/span> Hezbollah,<\/span> which<\/span> has<\/span> sent<\/span> thousands<\/span> of<\/span> fighters<\/span> to<\/span> support<\/span> Syrian<\/span> President<\/span> Bashar<\/span> Assad’s<\/span> forces.<\/span> I<\/span> admit<\/span> it.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Israeli<\/span> attack<\/span> comes<\/span> within<\/span> the<\/span> broader<\/span> shadow<\/span> war<\/span> between<\/span> Israel<\/span> and<\/span> Iran.<\/span> The<\/span> attacks<\/span> on<\/span> Damascus<\/span> and<\/span> Aleppo<\/span> airports<\/span> ignored<\/span> concerns<\/span> that<\/span> they<\/span> were<\/span> being<\/span> used<\/span> to<\/span> smuggle<\/span> Iranian<\/span> weapons<\/span> into<\/span> the<\/span> country.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Although<\/span> he<\/span> did<\/span> not<\/span> directly<\/span> mention<\/span> the<\/span> attack,<\/span> Israeli<\/span> Prime<\/span> Minister<\/span> Benjamin<\/span> Netanyahu<\/span> said<\/span> at<\/span> a<\/span> ministerial<\/span> meeting<\/span> on<\/span> Sunday<\/span> that<\/span> Israel<\/span> will<\/span> continue<\/span> to<\/span> defend<\/span> itself<\/span> against<\/span> what<\/span> it<\/span> sees<\/span> as<\/span> an<\/span> Iranian<\/span> aggression.<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BEIRUT (AFP) \u2014 Israeli airstrikes targeted a residential neighborhood in the Syrian capital of Damascus early Sunday, killing at least five people and wounding 15, Syrian state news reported. Loud explosions were heard over a central area of the capital around 12: 30 a.m. local time, and SANA reported that Syrian air defenses were \u201cconfronting […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4122,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[252,2450,26,276],"tags":[487,646,696,900,1140],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/ISR.webp","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4121"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4121"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4121\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4123,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4121\/revisions\/4123"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4121"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4121"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4121"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}