Syria

The Syrian civil war between President Bashar al-Assad and rebel forces, including ISIS, has been ongoing since 2011. Iran, Hezbollah, and Russia are all on the ground in Syria fighting to support the Syrian regime against ISIS and many other rebels. This confluence of several different enemies, some religious radicals and others secular, has produced a muddy conflict with no good possible outcomes. Israel, on Syria’s southern border, has stayed out of the war except for occasional targeted strikes when Israel’s security was threatened, and humanely treating those wounded in the conflict. On February 10, 2018, Iranian forces stationed in Syria invaded Israel’s air space with a drone, provoking Israel to respond by shooting the UAV out of the sky and attacking the vehicle on the ground in Syria operating the drone. During the course of Israel’s counterattack, Syrian anti-aircraft missiles shot down an Israeli F-16 and injured two pilots. The IDF responded by destroying 4 Syrian command posts and 8 Iranian command posts in Syria. This incident showed that Iran and its allies in Syria are spoiling for a fight with Israel.

In 3rd attack in hours, aircraft said to strike Iranian truck on Syria-Iraq border

Unverified media reports claimed Monday that unidentified aircraft struck a truck near the Syria-Iraq border, hours after a similar strike was reported overnight Sunday and a separate attack in the morning hours.

The Syrian opposition online outlet Naher Media said the truck that was hit in the city of Abu Kamal was loaded with weapons and…

‘Kamikaze’ drones attack US, coalition forces at Syria outpost; no Americans injured

Three one-way drones, sometimes called “kamikaze” drones, targeted a U.S. garrison at an outpost in Syria’s Al-Tanf region U.S. Central Command said Friday, noting that no Americans were injured in the attack.
Two members of the Syrian Free Army received medical attention after they were injured in the strike when one of the drones hit the…

Israel strikes air base in central Syria, killing two servicemen, Syrian military says

Israeli missiles hit a major air base in Syria’s Homs province on Sunday, killing two servicemen and injuring three others, the Syrian military said via state news agency SANA.
Military sources said the air base, at Shayrat, was recently used by the Iranian airforce.
Syrian state media posted a short video of the “aggression” and said there were…

Syria – Liwa Zaynabiyoun

Liwa Zaynabiyoun (The Zaynabiyoun Brigade) is an Iranian proxy comprised of Pakistani Shia Muslims. It derives its name from the shrine of Sayyidah Zaynab where the granddaughter of Muhammad is buried near Damascus. The group was tasked with protecting the shrine and this served as the justification for its deployment in Syria.

It was formed…

Reports: Israeli air strike triggers Syrian missile defense near Damascus

04/07/2021
Syrian air defenses responded to an Israeli airstrike in the Damascus area, according to the Syrian state-run SANA early Thursday.
The report said the Israeli attack came from the Golan Heights and Lebanese airspace. According to media reports, the air defense systems successfully shot down a number of missiles.
A military source…

Israel launches strike on targets in Syria – report

03/16/2021
Israeli military strikes were reportedly launched at targets located near the Syrian capital of Damascus, state media said late Tuesday night.
It remains unclear if any casualties resulted in the reported attack.
Israel maintains a policy of ambiguity regarding regional military operations and has not commented on the development….

Amid Syria Strikes, CENTCOM Air Force Chief Visits Israel

02/25/2021

Amid reports of an American airstrike against Iranian targets in eastern Syria, Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) Commander, Lt.-Gen. Gregory M. Guillot completed his first visit to Israel on Friday.

Guillot was hosted by his Israeli counterpart, Commanding Officer of the Israeli Air Force, Maj.-Gen. Amikam Norkin.

An IDF…

Israel Carries Out ‘Rare’ Daylight Strike Against Likely Iranian Arms Shipment In Eastern Syria

02/11/2021
Reports said no casualties or injuries known in attack near Syrian-Iraqi border

Iraqi media outlets reported Thursday morning that Israel carried out “rare” airstrikes against a military shipment en route to Syria from Iran, Israel’s public broadcaster Kan reported.
The location of the attack was on the Syrian side of the…

Alleged Israeli Airstrike Reported In Southern Syria

02/04/2021

An alleged Israeli airstrike targeted sites in southern Syria and near Damascus on Wednesday night, according to Syria’s state news agency SANA. 

Independent reports from regional media reported that the strikes also targeted sites near Damascus, including near the city’s international airport and sites belonging to the Syrian…

Israel Strikes Pro-Iran Militia In Syria: Report

01/22/2021

Israeli airstrikes targeted a site near the city of Hama in northwestern Syria in the predawn hours of Friday morning, Syrian media reported.

These were the first Israeli strikes against targets in Syria reported since US President Joe Biden entered office earlier this week and the fifth such alleged attack in the past month.

‘Israeli Airstrikes Near Syria-Iraq Border Targeted Iranian Weapons’

01/13/2021

The Israeli airstrikes against Iranian weapons and targets along the Syrian-Iraq border were based on intelligence provided by the United States, an American intelligence source told the Associated Press on Wednesday morning. 

According to Syrian news reports, Israeli planes struck targets in the Deir Ezzor region of eastern Syria…

Alleged Israeli Airstrike Reported In Southern Syria

01/07/2021

An alleged Israeli airstrike targeted locations in southern Syria as explosions were heard in the skies over Damascus on Wednesday night, according to Syrian state media SANA.

The strikes were launched from the Golan Heights, a Syrian military source told SANA, claiming that most of the incoming missiles were intercepted by Syrian…

Anti-Aircraft Missile Shot at Israeli Aircraft from Syrian Territory: Report

Civilian building and vehicle damaged following incident, ‘likely cause by fragments,’ IDF says

An anti-aircraft missile was reportedly fired at an Israel Air Force (IAF) aircraft Friday from across the Syrian border as shrapnel landed in Israeli territory, causing damage to a civilian building and vehicle in the Druze town of Majdal Shams.
The…

Israeli Airstrikes Reported Against Iranian Sites in Syria, Killing 7

Suspected Israeli airstrikes late Tuesday in Syria killed at least seven people, including two Syrian soldiers and five pro-Iranian militia members, SANA and Britain-based watchdog said.

Two soldiers were killed and four others wounded in the strikes in the southern province of Sweida, a Syrian military source cited by state media said.

“Several…

Syrian Chemical Weapons Agency Sought Illicit WMD Tech in Germany

Syria’s Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC), an agency the US government says builds chemical weapons for the regime of Bashar Assad, made attempts last year to obtain illegal weapons of mass destruction technology in the German state of Baden-Württemberg.

According to an eye-popping section reviewed by The Jerusalem Post in the new…

US Slaps Sweeping Sanctions on Syria in New Pressure Campaign

The US introduced sanctions Wednesday against dozens of individuals in Syria, including Asma al-Assad, the powerful wife of the country’s President Bashar al-Assad.
“We anticipate many more sanctions and we will not stop until Assad and his regime stop their needless, brutal war against the Syrian people,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a…

Ahead of New Sanctions, US Pledges Assad Will Not Secure ‘Military Victory’

The United States on Tuesday warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that he will never secure a full victory and must reach a political compromise, on the eve of stinging new sanctions.
The war-torn nation has seen an intensifying economic crisis and on Wednesday the Caesar Act takes effect, a US law that targets companies that deal with…

Drone Strike in Syria Kills Two Jihadist Leaders: Monitor

A drone attack in northwestern Syria killed two commanders of an al-Qaeda-affiliated group on Sunday, a war monitor said.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the attack on Syria’s last major rebel bastion of Idlib could have been carried out by the United States.
But a spokesman for the US-led international coalition battling jihadists in…