Israel allegedly targets Damascus airport once more in overnight strike

Author: Published: September 17, 2022

Israel reportedly carried out an airstrike on Damascus International airport and other positions south of Damascus, killing five Syrian soldiers.

By REUTERS
Published: SEPTEMBER 17, 2022 01:09
Updated: SEPTEMBER 17, 2022 07:34
Ofek 1 images of Damascus International Airport (photo credit: MINISTRY OF DEFENSE SPOKESPERSON'S OFFICE)
Ofek 1 images of Damascus International Airport
(photo credit: MINISTRY OF DEFENSE SPOKESPERSON’S OFFICE)

Israel carried out an airstrike on Syria‘s Damascus International airport and other positions south of the capital, killing five soldiers and causing material damage, the ministry of defense said early on Saturday.

Syrian air defenses intercepted the attack and managed to down most of the missiles, a ministry statement said.

There was no immediate confirmation if the strike has affected airport operations.

Israel’s previous airstrikes on Syria

Israel has intensified strikes on Syrian airports to disrupt Tehran’s increasing use of aerial supply lines to deliver arms to allies in Syria and Lebanon including Hezbollah, regional diplomatic and intelligence sources told Reuters.

Smoke rises after airstrikes on a rebel-held part of the southern city of Deraa, Syria, June 15, 2017 (illustrative). (credit: REUTERS/ALAA AL-FAQIR)Smoke rises after airstrikes on a rebel-held part of the southern city of Deraa, Syria, June 15, 2017 (illustrative). (credit: REUTERS/ALAA AL-FAQIR)

Tehran has adopted air transport as a more reliable means of ferrying military equipment to its forces and allied fighters in Syria, following disruptions to ground transfers.

Hundreds of thousands of people have died and millions made homeless since protests against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in 2011 developed into a civil war that drew in foreign powers and left Syria carved into zones of control.

Suspected Israeli Attack Reported in Outskirts of Syria’s Capital Damascus

Author: Published: September 17, 2022
Israeli Air Force F-15 plane performs during a graduation ceremony for new pilots in the Hatzerim air force base near the city of Beersheba, Israel, Thursday, Dec. 29, 2016 - Sputnik International, 1920, 16.09.2022
Being updated
Air defenses were reportedly activated near Damascus early on Saturday morning, with Syrian state media reporting that the capital was under attack by the Israeli Air Force.
Video posted on social media purported to be of the attack shows flashes in the sky similar to explosions seen when surface-to-air missiles strike their targets, and the roar of jet engines can be heard.
The strikes come amid an increased tempo of attack by Israel against targets in Syria, having bombed a major science center in Damascus and the international airport in the northern hub of Aleppo in the last month, alongside other strikes.
Some reports indicated the Saturday strike targeted Damascus International Airport.
Israel claims its attacks in Syria are aimed at keeping Iran or Syria from being able to prepare attacks against Israel.
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei ‘gravely ill,’ underwent surgery – report

Author: Published: September 17, 2022

He was suffering from extreme stomach pains and high fever and is under the supervision of doctors, The New York Times reported.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Published: SEPTEMBER 16, 2022 21:43
IRAN’S SUPREME Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei gestures, marking the 33rd anniversary of the death of the leader of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Tehran, in June. (photo credit: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/West Asia News Agency/Reuters)
IRAN’S SUPREME Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei gestures, marking the 33rd anniversary of the death of the leader of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Tehran, in June.
(photo credit: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/West Asia News Agency/Reuters)

Iran‘s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has fallen “gravely ill” with his situation considered to be critical last week, The New York Times reported on Friday evening.

However, he has since improved and is resting after undergoing surgery, the report added.

He was suffering from extreme stomach pains and high fever and is under the supervision of doctors, NYT said, citing four people close to the 83-year-old dictator.

Khameini’s office reportedly canceled all of his meetings scheduled for last week as his health deteriorated.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei attends a meeting via video conference with people from East Azarbaijan in Tehran, Iran, February 17, 2022. (credit: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/West Asia News Agency/Reuters)Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei attends a meeting via video conference with people from East Azarbaijan in Tehran, Iran, February 17, 2022. (credit: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/West Asia News Agency/Reuters)

Khamenei ill as Iran nuclear talks falter

The report of the Iranian leader’s worsening situation comes as the Islamic Republic’s hopes to finalize the revival of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) were all but dashed by the United States and Western powers due to the distance between the two parties during negotiations.

Last week, France, Germany and the UK criticized Iran’s conduct in the talks, saying Iran “continues to escalate its nuclear program way beyond any plausible civilian justification.”

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said that the statement was “not constructive,” accusing Europe of “taking a step in the direction of Israel, which wants the nuclear talks to fail.”

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