Inside Alleged Israeli Strikes on Syria's Aleppo

PERSPECTIVES | In continuation with its policy to stop Iran in Syria, Israeli fighter jets reportedly struck Iranian targets in Syria near Aleppo. What does this mean for the tensions as the Golan Heights were declared under Israeli sovereignty by Trump. Our Mohammad Al-Kassim analyzes.

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Syria said Wednesday that air defense batteries responded to “hostile Israel missiles” over the northern city of Aleppo, with opposition sources saying the strikes had targeted ammunition deports and a military airport used by Iranian forces. 

State news agency SANA said that the Syrian military had 'repelled an Israeli air aggression' that targeted a number of industrial sites in an industrial zone near the Al-Nayrab airport. 

'The Israeli aggression targeted some positions in Sheikh Najjar industrial zone and a number of enemy missiles were brought down,' an army statement said. 

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Israeli bombardment hit 'ammunition stores belonging to Iranian forces and allied groups, and caused huge explosions.'

The Observatory added that at least seven people were killed. The casualties were neither Syrian nor Iranian, it said, but could not specify their nationalities.

The Syrian military, meanwhile, said that the Israeli strike caused only material damage. 

The raids caused electricity blackouts across Aleppo — Syria's second-largest city and a major industrial hub that military experts say is a stronghold for Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps.

The area has been targeted several times in recent years by raids attributed to Israel.

Israel's acting Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz appeared to confirm his country's operation in an interview with Army Radio on Thursday morning, saying: 'As far as Iran knows, it's Israel' that struck the weapons depot, adding that it was a 'challenging' operation.

'We are being credited by foreign media with an air force operation this past night against Iranian forces in Syria,' Katz said. 'According to the sources it’s Israel, and according to what the Syrians said and responded it’s Israel. As far as Iran knows it’s Israel.'

“There were other operations like this one that we have taken responsibility for,” he said. “This operation was far more challenging militarily, and much more powerful” than those carried out by Israel in the Gaza Strip.

Israel has vowed repeatedly to act to prevent Iran — a major backer of Syria's embattled president Bashar al-Assad in the country's devastating eight-year civil war — from entrenching itself militarily in war-torn Syria.

In January Israel hit a number of Iranian installations in the country, hours after intercepting a rocket fired from Syrian territory.

The Observatory said 21 people, mostly Iranians, were killed in those attacks.

In May 2018, Israeli strikes killed 27 pro-regime fighters including 11 Iranians in strikes on dozens of Iranian targets inside Syria.

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