Syria says Israel hit outposts in Homs, sources say air bases bombed By Reuters
Suleiman Al-Khalidi
AMMAN (Reuters) – Israel hit outposts in the Syrian province of Homs in a raid early Sunday morning, the Syrian Defense Ministry said, while Western intelligence sources said the strikes targeted a number of airbases in the country’s central region, where based Iranian personnel. .
The Israeli military declined to comment on reports of the latest strike in Syria, the third since Thursday and just a day after another attack on Friday that killed an Iranian Revolutionary Guards officer.
At 00:35, Israel launched “aerial aggression from northwest Beirut targeting some outposts in the city of Homs and its countryside,” the Syrian Defense Ministry said in a statement released to state media.
Two Western intelligence sources, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the missiles targeted the T4 airbase, west of the ancient city of Palmyra, and Al-Dabaa Airport near the city of Al-Quseir near the Lebanese border. , where members of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah live.
Sources said Iranian troops, along with Lebanese Hezbollah fighters, are stationed at both airports, and there is a strong presence of pro-Iranian militias in this area of Homs province.
Reuters cannot independently verify these accounts.
Syria dismisses Western and Israeli claims that Iran, whose top military officials frequently visit Syria, has a large military presence in the country.
A Syrian military source told state media that the strikes caused property damage and injured five soldiers.
Israel has been attacking for years what it
called Iranian-linked targets in Syria, where Tehran
influence has grown since he started supporting President Bashar
Assad in a conflict that began in 2011 after a brutal crackdown on peaceful protesters.
Last year, Israel stepped up its strikes on Syrian airports and airbases to thwart what it says is Iran’s use of air supply lines to deliver weapons to the militias.
Western intelligence sources said Iran is increasingly using multiple civilian airports to deliver more weapons, taking advantage of heavy air traffic as cargo planes unload humanitarian aid after February’s deadly earthquake.
Iran declined to comment on the accusations of the West and Israel.
