An Israeli F-16 fighter jet en route to an exercise in Germany in an undated photograph. (Israel Defense Forces)
On November 13 afternoon, a series of Israeli airstrikes hit a key air base in Syria’s central region causing human and material losses.
A military official said in a statement to the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency that Israeli fighter jets launched an aerial attack on Shayrat Air Base in the eastern Homs countryside from the direction of Tripoli and Hermel in Lebanon’s northern region.
“Our air defense means confronted hostile missiles and were able to shot down some of them,” the unnamed official said.
The official went on to acknowledge that two soldiers were killed and three others were wounded as a result of the aerial attack. He also confirmed that the air base sustained some material losses, without providing any details.
Shayrat Air Base was attacked by Israel on several occasions in the last few years. The air base is not known to host any personnel of Lebanon’s Hezbollah or any other group backed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
A video that allegedly shows multiple large explosions at the air base surfaced online after the attack. The video is yet to be verified, however.
This was the first confirmed Israeli attack on Syria this month. On November 8, a series of strikes hit al-Qa’im crossing on Syria’s border with Iraq, killing at least ten people including Iranian nationals. The target of the strikes was allegedly an Iranian fuel and weapons shipment destined for Hezbollah in Lebanon. A recent report by The Wall Street Journal said that Israel was behind the strikes. However, this is yet to be confirmed by the Syrian or Iraqi officials.
Israel tuned down its attacks on Syria in the last few months. Officials from Tel Aviv claimed in October that recent Israeli attacks had destroyed about 90% of Iran’s military infrastructure in Syria. The officials said that Iran can no longer transfer weapons to Syria, manufacture weapons on the country’s soil, or establish bases there with ease.
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