Syrian state media reported Saturday that Israeli surface-to-surface missiles struck targets in the Damascus region.
At around 11:17 am Saturday, “the Israeli enemy launched a number of missiles” from northern Israel, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), which said the attack “targeted some points in Damascus countryside.”
The strike “thwarted the shipment of advanced Iranian weapons through Syria, before reaching the Lebanese border,” according to the Hebrew-language Ynet news outlet.
Photos reportedly of the rare daytime Israeli airstrikes near Damascus. pic.twitter.com/0lNoHCePF8
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian)
Syrian air defenses “repelled the missiles and shot down a number of them” injuring two Syrian soldiers and causing material damage, SANA reported.
According to the Israeli Haaretz news outlet, five military personnel were killed.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) watchdog organization said the attack destroyed arms and ammunition depots belonging to Iranian forces and allied militias in Qudsaya and Dimas.
התקיפה בסוריה: "היעד – משלוח נשק מתקדם שיועד לחיזבאללה" pic.twitter.com/D9hwYUED4a
— ynet עדכוני (@ynetalerts)
It is very rare for IDF-attributed attacks to take place in Syria during daylight hours.
The IDF declined to comment on the attack, in accordance with official state policy, but has said repeatedly that it will not allow Iranian forces to become entrenched across Israel’s northern border in Syria.