According to the Syrian military, Israeli missile strikes temporarily closed Damascus International Airport.
According to the Syrian Defense Ministry, at around 2 a.m. this morning, the aircraft launched a series of missiles toward Damascus International Airport and other points south of the capital, Damascus.
The missiles were launched from the direction of Israel’s Lake Tiberias. The assault resulted in the deaths of two Syrian service members and some property damage.
There was an attack on the airport, and the Syrian Ministry of Transportation declared that it would be closed briefly before reopening at 9 a.m.
At least two regional intelligence sources have previously reported that the strike was aimed at the Quds base of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Tehran-backed militants.
There has been no response from the Israeli military as of yet. Israel has repeatedly struck sites in its northern neighbor, Syria, since the commencement of hostilities in 2011. These targets have included the positions of Syrian government troops and Hezbollah and Iran-backed paramilitary groups.
Since 2022, Israel has intensified its air assault on Damascus International Airport and other Syrian civilian aviation facilities in an effort to cut off Iran’s supply of arms to Syria and Lebanon. The most recent strike was in September and caused Aleppo Airport, Syria’s second largest, to close for several days.
Israel rarely discusses its air strikes, but it has admitted to conducting hundreds. Israeli authorities have justified the air campaign by saying it is necessary to prevent Iran, which Israel views as a “spontaneous enemy,” from establishing a presence on Israel’s border.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is a branch of the Iranian Armed Forces, founded after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The IRGC is responsible for defending Iran’s Islamic system and has a wide range of duties, including providing security for nuclear facilities and critical infrastructure and conducting military operations abroad.
The IRGC has also been involved in various economic activities in Iran, including construction and energy projects. The IRGC has been designated as a terrorist organization by several countries, including the United States.
Israel and Syria’s relationship
Israel and Syria have a complex and contentious relationship. The two countries have been in a state of conflict for many years, with periods of tension and hostility punctuated by occasional efforts at negotiation and reconciliation.
In 1948, when Israel declared its independence, Syria was one of the Arab states that invaded the newly formed country in an effort to prevent its establishment. Since then, the two countries have engaged in several wars and conflicts, including the 1967 Six-Day War and the 1973 Yom Kippur War.
Throughout much of the past several decades, Syria has been a key player in the Arab-Israeli conflict, supporting various Palestinian militant groups and opposing peace efforts between Israel and the Palestinians.
In recent years, the Syrian government has also been accused of providing support to Hezbollah, a Lebanon-based militant group that has carried out attacks against Israel.
In recent years, the conflict between Israel and Syria has largely been overshadowed by the ongoing civil war in Syria, which has been raging since 2011. Israel has largely stayed out of the conflict, though it has carried out occasional airstrikes against Syrian targets, including those believed to be controlled by Iranian forces or allied with Hezbollah.
Despite the longstanding hostilities between the two countries, there have been occasional efforts at negotiation and reconciliation. In the past, there have been several rounds of peace talks between Israel and Syria, though none have resulted in a lasting peace agreement.