JERUSALEM (JTA) — Airstrikes said to have been carried out by Israel struck several Iranian targets in Syria, killing 14 Iranian and Iraqi troops, according to a human rights group.
Israel has neither confirmed nor denied the report of Monday night’s strikes by the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The targets included Iranian forces and Iranian-backed militias in three deserts in eastern Syria and weapons warehouses near Aleppo, in the northern part of the country.
There have been reports of up to seven suspected Israeli airstrikes on Syria in the past two weeks.
“We have moved from blocking Iran’s entrenchment in Syria to forcing it out of there, and we will not stop,” Defense Minister Naftali Bennett said in a statement after an airstrike on April 28, appearing to confirm Israel’s responsibility for the attack. “We will not allow more strategic threats to grow just across our borders without taking action. We will continue to take the fight to the enemy’s territory.”
Israel has acknowledged some past airstrikes on Syria, and in recent months reportedly has struck Iranian targets in Syria, including intelligence centers, weapons depots, storage facilities, observation posts and logistics centers, as well as the T4 airbase near Homs, in northern Syria, which is believed to be controlled by Iran.
