Two Injured as Israel Strikes Syrian Port City of Latakia

An overnight Israeli strike was reported in the important Syrian port city of Latakia. Syrian state media and others report that two civilians were injured in the strike, near the southeast entrance to the city. It also caused fires and damaged some private property.

Israel did not comment on this latest strike on Latakia, and it’s unclear what the purpose of it was. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claimed the raid targeted a weapons depot, but it’s not been confirmed that this was actually the case.

Israel has been conducting a growing number of airstrikes across Syria, and indeed across the region. Strikes in Latakia are potentially risky because of the proximity of Hmeimim, a Russian operated air base in the region.

This is the second time this month Israel has carried out strikes in and around Hmeimim. The previous attacks hit a warehouse in the nearby city of Jableh. The warehouse was holding humanitarian aid, and was hit after the arrival of an Iranian plane bringing humanitarian aid to help the displaced in Syria.

Russia has long warned that the area around Hmeimim base and the nearby Tartus Naval Base should be considered a no-go area for Israel. Israel has been escalating its attacks since the invasion of Lebanon last month, and past warnings seem to matter less and less.

Israeli strikes across Syria have been ongoing throughout the civil war, and nominally have been targeting Iran’s presence in the country, though many of the strikes, like today’s appear to be totally unrelated to Iran and are just part of an overall Israeli escalation.