An Israeli Air Force F-35 fighter jet flies during an aerial demonstration at a graduation ceremony for Israeli airforce pilots at the Hatzerim air base in southern Israel December 29, 2016.. (photo credit: REUTERS/AMIR COHEN)
The Israeli military struck an S-200 long-range air-defense system of the Syrian Arab Air Defense Forces (SyAADF) whose fire reached the Israeli capital Tel Aviv early on September 3, according to Israel’s Army Radio.
A missile launched by the system chased one of several Israeli warplanes which launched airstrikes on targets in the outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus all the way to Tel Aviv before exploding off the city’s coast. Debris from the explosion fell near the city. The Israeli military didn’t attempt to intercept the missile or issue any warning. No losses were reported as a result of the incident.
According to the Army Radio, the Syrian S-200 system was “severely damaged” as a result of the Israeli military’s retaliatory strikes.
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The state-run radio station also revealed that the earlier airstrikes hit “Iranian targets” in Damascus International Airport. One of the targets was allegedly a warehouse where “strategic weapons” were stored.
Israeli warplanes launched the airstrikes from the airspace of Lebanon, according to a Syrian military source. No casualties were reported.
This was not the first time the Israeli military has responded to Syrian air-defense fire. Last April, a Syrian S-200 missile landed some 250 km deep in Israel, 40 km away from the Dimona nuclear reactor, after chasing an Israeli warplane. The Israeli military responded by wiping out a large base of the SyAADF.
