Hezbollah arms go up in flames
Israel strikes depot in Syria to prevent arming of Lebanese group by Iran
Israel struck an arms supply hub operated by the Lebanese group Hezbollah near Damascus airport on Thursday, Syrian rebel and regional intelligence sources said, targeting weapons sent from Iran via commercial and military cargo planes.
Video carried on Lebanese TV and shared on social media showed the pre-dawn airstrikes caused a fire around the airport east of the Syrian capital, suggesting fuel sources or weapons containing explosives were hit.
Syrian state media said Israeli missiles hit a military position southwest of the airport, but did not mention arms or fuel. It said “Israeli aggression” had caused explosions and some material losses, but did not expand on the damage.
Israel does not usually comment on action it takes in Syria. But intelligence minister Israel Katz, speaking to Army Radio from the United States, appeared to confirm involvement.
“The incident in Syria corresponds completely with Israel’s policy to act to prevent Iran’s smuggling of advanced weapons via Syria to Hezbollah,” he said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had “said that whenever we receive intelligence that indicates an intention to transfer advanced weapons to Hezbollah, we will act,” he added.
An Israeli military spokeswoman said: “We can’t comment on such reports.”
Two senior rebel sources in the Damascus area, citing monitors in the eastern outskirts of the capital, said five strikes hit an ammunition depot used by Iran-backed militias.
Lebanon’s al-Manar television, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, said early indications were that the strikes hit warehouses and fuel tanks. It said there no casualties.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is backed in his six-year-old civil war by Russia, Iran and regional Shi’ite militias. These include Hezbollah, a close ally of Tehran and enemy of Israel, which describes the group as the biggest threat it faces on its borders. The two fought a month-long war in 2006.
Syrian military defectors familiar with the airport say it plays a major role as a conduit for arms from Tehran.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin on Thursday called for restraint after Syria accused Israel of firing several missiles at a military position near Damascus airport.
“We continue to consider that all countries need to refrain from any kind of
actions that lead to an increase in tension in this already restive region and call for respect of the sovereignty of Syria,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Russia, which has deployed its forces to back up the Syrian regime, has a hotline set up to avoid clashes with Israeli jets in the skies over the war-torn country.
Peskov did not confirm if Israel had warned Moscow
of the strike, saying only that the two nations’ “defence ministries are in constant dialogue”.
Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova later went further than the Kremlin and slammed the alleged Israeli strikes.
“Gross violations of Syria Syria accused Israel of triggering a huge explosion near Damascus airport on Thursday by firing several missiles at a military position. — Agencies