 "Israel bombs Syrian city, US hits Houthis in Yemen as Iran vows ‘painful’ retaliation if targeted")
Israel on Thursday carried out a rare air strike on Syrian coastal city of Latakia, a stronghold of President Bashar al-Assad, resulting in fires breaking out there. Two civilians were injured and private properties were damaged in the attack, Syrian state news agency SANA reported.
“Around 2:50 am (2350 GMT), the Israeli enemy carried out an air attack… targeting one of the points near the southeast entrance of the city of Latakia,” SANA report cited a statement from a military source.
The report further said that “anti-aircraft defence intercepted hostile targets above Latika."
Though strikes are rare on the port city as it is situated near a Russian air base in Hmeimim, the Syrian Observatory for Human Right – a Britain-based monitor – said that the Israeli raid “targetted a weapons dept belonging to Hezbollah in Latakia."
Israeli strikes on Syria have intensified since the start of the war in neighbouring Lebanon.
US strikes Houthis in Yemen
Meanwhile, Israel’s main ally, the United States also conducted strikes in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen on Thursday.
In a statement, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said America conducted multiple B-2 bomber strikes on weapon storage facilities in Yemen.
As per US Air Force website, the B-2 is a stealth aircraft capable of flying non-stop from the US, with a payload of 40,000 pounds of bombs.
Impact Shorts
More Shorts“US forces targeted several of the Houthis’ underground facilities housing various weapons components of types that the Houthis have used to target civilian and military vessels throughout the region,” Austin said.
Syria, the Houthi rebels in Yemen, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza all belong to the so-called “axis of resistance” led by Iran, which conducted a ballistic missile strike on Israel on October 1. Tel Aviv has already vowed to retaliate for Iran’s strike and is expected to strike before the 2024 US Presidential election on November 5.
Iran vows ‘painful’ retaliation if attacked
On Thursday, the chief commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Major General Hossein Salami, warned that his country would hit Israel “painfully” if it attacks Iranian targets.
“If you make a mistake and attack our targets, whether in the region or in Iran, we will strike you again painfully,” Salami said in a speech at the funeral of a Guards general, who was killed in an Israeli strike on south Beirut last month that also killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah.
How Iran got dragged in Israel’s war with Hamas?
On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked Israel marking the start of the Gaza war and tensions in West Asia.
In support of Hamas, its ally - Hezbollah - opened up a front against Israel by launching cross-border attacks from Lebanon last year.
The continuous exchanges of fire have forced tens of thousands of people on both sides to flee their homes.
It’s been over a year, that Israel has been at war with Hamas and has managed to weaken the Palestinian terrorist group.
Israel has now widened its focus of operations to Lebanon by launching massive strikes on Hezbollah strongholds around the country. On September 30, Tel Aviv started sending ground troops across the border.
Israel’s bombardment of Hezbollah targets on Wednesday (October 16) toppled buildings and killed a city mayor in southern Lebanon.
As per Lebanon’s health ministry, 16 people were killed and 52 wounded in strikes on two municipal buildings in the southern city of Nabatiyeh, where Hezbollah and its ally Amal hold sway.
On Thursday, Israel issued an evacuation warning for civilians in part of the eastern Lebanese Bekaa valley, a traditional stronghold of Hezbollah.
With inputs from AFP.
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