Israeli Airstrikes Kill Four Civilians in Syria

Israeli warplanes attack several sites inside Syria

A number of civilian casualties were reported Monday when overnight airstrikes carried out by Israel, hitting targets across Syria, ended up hitting a suburb near one of its intended targets near Damascus.

Syrian state media reported that the Israeli strike killed 4 civilians and wounded 21 others. The Syrian Observatory, however, suggested that 6 civilians were slain in the overnight attack. Israel has not commented.

Israel regularly carried out attacks inside Syrian territory, nominally to attack Iran. These mostly cover military targets, although they are clearly not perfect at their targeting of sites.

Indications are that the Israeli warplanes were in Lebanese airspace at the time of the attack. This is common, as the Lebanese military lacks serious air defense to prevent Israeli incursions, and seems to be a favored staging area for aerial attacks into neighboring Syria.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.