Israeli Strikes Kill Six, Including TV Anchor, Around Syrian Capital of Damascus

Three civilians among the slain, nine civilians wounded

While Israel’s main focus is their ongoing invasion of the Gaza Strip and their new invasion of Lebanon, that doesn’t mean they aren’t going to find time to keep attacking their other neighbors and killing people. This was underscored today when they attacked areas in and around the Syrian capital of Damascus.

Reports are that the strikes included attacks on vehicles in the upscale Mazzeh District, and that they also struck anti-aircraft radar stations at the airport in Damascus. This may suggest they’re softening up air defense in Syria for further attacks.

At least six people were reported killed in the attacks, three of them civilians. Among the civilians was female journalist Safaa Ahmed, described as an anchor associated with Syrian state media. SANA confirmed that she was among the slain.

Nine civilians were reported wounded in the strikes, they have not been identified. It is still unclear who the non-civilians killed were, as the Mazzeh District includes a number of government offices as well as the embassy district of Damascus.

Though it isn’t often as high profile as the ongoing wars, Israel has been striking targets in Syria intermittently for years, and as recently as the past week struck Syria alongside its attacks on Yemen, Lebanon, Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

Today’s strikes suggest that Israel’s escalation is far from over, and attacking radar systems may portend further strikes around 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.