Suspected Israeli Strike Hits Syria, Causes Material Damage

Syrian state media reported that the airstrike hit the air defense installation in the southern province of Daraa early Friday.

“At around 2:55 am this morning, the Israeli enemy launched a missile attack from the north of occupied Palestine, targeting our air defense sites in the southern region [of the country]. The aggression resulted in material damage,” SANA quoted a military source as saying.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said some loud blasts were heard in the countryside of Daraa during the early hours of Friday, linking them to a possible Israeli airstrike that targeted an air defense radar between the city of Izraa and Qarfa town.

Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said six Israeli fighter jets were seen entering Syrian airspace and heading east. Rahman also said the jets were flying eastward when they were picked up by the radar.

This strike came as news of an airstrike on the Iranian city of Isfahan was carried out by Israel —a major city in which several sensitive nuclear facilities are based.

While Iran-backed groups operate out of Syria, It is unclear whether the strikes are directly linked to the Isfahan explosions.

The state news agency IRNA reported early Friday that "Iran's air defense systems were activated in the skies over multiple provinces". This came after the state broadcaster IRIB reported hearing "large explosions" near Esfahan.

US officials have since confirmed in multiple reports that Israel carried out the strike, though the scope of damage has yet to be confirmed.

This latest news followed Iran’s drone and missile attack on Israel last weekend – the first-ever direct assault on the country. Iran says that strike was in response to a widely-believed Israeli attack on an alleged Iranian consulate in Damascus earlier this month.