Israeli airstrikes over Syria’s central city of Homs and nearby areas killed and wounded civilians, the Syrian military said Wednesday without giving details.
Quick Read
- Airstrikes in Homs: Israeli airstrikes targeted Syria’s central city of Homs and surrounding areas, resulting in civilian casualties and damage to infrastructure, as reported by the Syrian military.
- Casualty Details: According to reports, the airstrikes led to the deaths of at least six civilians, including a woman and a child, and injuries to others. Two Hezbollah militants and two unidentified individuals were also among the casualties.
- Locations Hit: The strikes affected the al-Malaab neighborhood and Hamra Street in Homs, with residential and public properties sustaining damage.
- Regional Tensions: These airstrikes occur amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, including the ongoing Israel-Hamas war and a recent drone attack near the Jordan-Syria border that killed three U.S. troops.
- Israel’s Strategy in Syria: Israel has conducted numerous airstrikes in Syria over the years, targeting Iran-allied groups like Hezbollah and Iranian military personnel, to prevent their entrenchment and curb their influence in the region.
The Associated Press has the story:
Syria says Israeli airstrikes over Homs killed and wounded civilians
Newslooks- DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) —
Israeli airstrikes over Syria’s central city of Homs and nearby areas killed and wounded civilians, the Syrian military said Wednesday without giving details.
There was no immediate comment from Israel. The strikes come as tensions across the Middle East grow with the Israel-Hamas war and a drone attack last month that killed three U.S. troops in northeastern Jordan near the Syrian border.
Syrian state news agency SANA quoted an unidentified military official as saying the strikes late Tuesday damaged private and public property. The pro-government Sham FM radio station said the areas struck included the affluent al-Malaab neighborhood and Hamra Street.
At least six civilians were killed including a woman and a child, along with two militants from the Lebanese Hezbollah group and two people who could not immediately be identified, according to the Britain-based pro-opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Humanitarian Rights.
The observatory said the casualties were all in a building on Hamra Street. It said at least nine explosions were heard in Homs and its outskirts, where Hezbollah is reportedly present.
Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of war-torn Syria in recent years.
Israel rarely acknowledges its actions in Syria, but it has said it targets bases of Iran-allied militant groups such as Hezbollah, which has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces. It has also targeted members of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard in Syria, including a high-ranking general in December.
