Israel Carried Out Airstrikes Against Iranian Targets In Syria

Airstrike in Syria in September 2018. Image by Getty Images

By Marcy Oster December 27, 2018

JERUSALEM (JTA) — An unnamed Israeli official confirmed that Israel carried out airstrikes in Syria, hitting several Iranian targets.

The airstrikes late on Tuesday night hit Iranian arms storage facilities and arms depots, used to ship the weapons to the terrorist Hezbollah organization in neighboring Lebanon.

The Israeli official also said that the airstrikes had destroyed a Syrian anti-aircraft battery used to fire on Israeli planes. Three Syrian soldiers were reported to have been injured in the airstrikes.

As it agreed, Israel informed Russia, which is operating in Syria, ahead of the airstrikes, the official said. Russia criticized Israel over the airstrikes, saying it had endangered two civilian flights landing at the Damascus and Beirut airports. The official blamed Syrian anti-aircraft fire for the danger to the flights.

The official also told reporters that Iranian forces are operating in Syria less 50 miles from the Israeli border, despite assurances from Russia that they are not that close.

Israel’s military has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the airstrikes, as is its standard procedure. Israel has admitted to carrying out dozens of airstrikes in Syria in recent years, to prevent the rise of Iran and to prevent it from sending weapons to Hezbollah.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO