IAF Hits Hezbollah Vehicle Near Damascus Airport

Photo Credit: Moshe Shai/Flash90

An Israeli Air Force F-15 fighter jet at the Tel Nof Base, near Rehovot. Jan. 1, 2024.

Syrian state media announced on Tuesday that a vehicle traveling near Damascus International Airport was struck in an Israeli airstrike.

The Israeli government, through an official speaking to Kan News, confirmed its involvement in the attack.

The U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors events through a network of sources inside Syria, reported that the strike was carried out by an Israeli drone. The attack resulted in one death and left another person injured, according to their findings.

Additional reports from Arab media claimed that the deceased individual was a member of Hezbollah, a Lebanese terror organization backed by Iran.

The incident followed a series of actions attributed to Israel. On Sunday night, Israeli fighter jets reportedly interdicted an Iranian aircraft over Syrian airspace. The plane, suspected of carrying weapons for Hezbollah, was forced to return to Tehran.

Days earlier, the Israeli Air Force targeted sites along the Syria-Lebanon border. According to Israeli statements, the operation aimed to disrupt arms smuggling routes utilized by Hezbollah despite a ceasefire agreement that came into effect on Nov. 27.

“The strikes were necessary to counter continued violations of the truce, including the transfer of weapons posing a direct threat to Israel,” the IDF stated.

Before the ceasefire took hold, Israel carried out airstrikes on border crossings between Syria and Lebanon for the first time, according to Lebanese Minister of Public Works and Transport Ali Hamieh, who was cited by Reuters. Syrian state media reported that the attacks killed six people, injured 12, and caused significant material damage.

The IDF later confirmed that the strikes targeted Hezbollah smuggling routes as part of broader efforts to enforce the ceasefire.

Meanwhile, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) disclosed on Nov. 26 that it had conducted an airstrike on a weapons storage facility operated by an Iranian-backed militia in Syria. The strike was a response to a previous attack by the militia on U.S. forces.

This report is based on content by JNS.