Israel bombs Syrian military targets near Russian Khmeimim airbase
On the night of Tuesday, December 28, Israel carried out airstrikes in the area of the seaport in the city of Latakia, located in northwestern Syria. According to the Syrian news agency SANA, container warehouses were bombed. SANA did not report what was in the containers.
According to SANA, air defense systems were activated during the attack.
This is the second report in a short time about a possible strike on the port in Latakia. Earlier, Damascus accused the Israel Defense Force of striking targets located either in the territory of military bases or in the territory of airports. The first such strike was reported by Syrian media three weeks ago.
The Russian news agency RIA Novosti, citing Syrian state media, published a report on the attack attributed to Israel, indicating that the Russian military airbase Khmeimim is located near Latakia.
The Israeli strike came just after the Syrian Foreign Ministry issued a sharp statement over the Israeli government's plans to develop the Golan Heights. Yesterday, the Israeli Government met in the Golan Heights and announced plans for the further development of the region. They include increased construction - both the expansion of Katzrin, and the creation of new settlements, the twofold increase in the population, the development of the tourism business and industry.
This meeting provoked the anger of officials of Bashar al-Assad's regime.
The Israeli air strikes came shortly after the interview of Israel’s Prime Minister Yair Lapid with the Russian newspaper Kommersant, where he answered the journalist's question "whether Jerusalem received permission from Moscow to continue attacks in Syria."
“Israel has the right to respond to any military threats coming from Syria,” Yair Lapid said.