Israel-Lebanon border fighting increasing, Tel Aviv airstrikes in Syria residential area kills 4 Iranian Guards

Al Jazeera
Sat, 20 Jan 2024 13:50 UTC

© Louai Beshara/AFP

People and rescuers at the site of the attack

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says four of its "military advisers" have been killed in an Israeli air strike on a residential building in Syria's capital, Damascus.

Syrian state media SANA said the attack on Saturday took place in the Mazzeh neighbourhood. It said "Israeli aggression" targeted the building.

A well-informed source told Al Jazeera the target was an IRGC intelligence unit, adding that a senior IRGC intelligence official in Syria and his assistants were in the building.

In a brief statement, the IRGC said an air strike by Israeli fighter jets killed "a number of Syrian forces and four military advisers". It later identified the people killed as Hojjatollah Omidvar, Ali Aghazadeh, Hossein Mohammadi and Saied Karimi, without sharing their ranks.

Iranian state television called it a "terrorist" attack by Israel, which has yet to comment.

The attack, which is believed to have been carried out with at least four missiles, completely destroyed a four-storey building, according to Iranian state media. At least one person was taken to hospital.

Saturday's strike comes amid widening tensions in the region and the Israeli offensive on Gaza that has killed nearly 25,000 people.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on Iran-linked targets inside government-controlled parts of war-torn Syria in recent years.

"Syria is not only a battleground of the power struggle between the regional and the global powers, but also is a ground for the intelligence wars as well," said Al Jazeera's Resul Serdar, reporting from Tehran.

"For Iran, Lebanon and particularly for Hezbollah, Syria is a crucial element in the so-called 'Axis of the Resistance', so that's why all their presence in Syria is kept secret," he added.

Last month, an Israeli air attack on a suburb of Damascus killed Iranian general Sayyed Razi Mousavi, a longtime IRGC adviser in Syria.

Israel rarely acknowledges its actions in Syria, but it has said that it targets bases of Iran-allied groups, such as Lebanon's Hezbollah, which has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces.

Earlier this month, an attack said to be carried out by Israel killed top Hamas commander Saleh al-Arouri in Lebanon's capital, Beirut.

Comment: This comes amid a comment by the IDF chief that a 'war in Lebanon is becoming much more likely'.

Over the past weeks, rockets have been fired from Syria into northern Israel and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, adding to tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border and attacks on ships in the Red Sea by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi rebels.

Iran on Monday struck Erbil, the capital of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, with ballistic missiles in what it said was an attack on an Israeli spy headquarters, a claim denied by Iraqi and Iraqi Kurdish officials. At least four people were killed in the attack.

Comment: Al Mayadeen reports on Israel's attacks in Lebanon:

Al Mayadeen's correspondent in southern Lebanon reported on Saturday that an Israeli drone strike targeted a car traveling on the Bazouriyeh-Borj al-Shamali road in the Tyre district, southern Lebanon. Our correspondent confirmed that this strike resulted in the martyrdom of two Lebanese Resistance fighters.

Israeli attacks are ongoing in southern Lebanon, as the National News Agency reported that an Israeli aircraft targeted a house in Marwahin on Saturday. The agency noted that the house had been targeted more than once during the recent period.

Earlier today, the Israeli occupation launched artillery shells directed at the outskirts of Tair Harfa and al-Jabain. This is happening as the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah - persists in targeting positions and gatherings of occupation forces along the occupied Lebanese-Palestinian border, resulting in direct casualties.

Hezbollah announced that its fighters successfully targeted a gathering of Israeli occupation soldiers near the Hunin Castle and the Zarit Barracks using missile weapons, affirming a direct hit.

With the ongoing resistance operations, settlers in the north have expressed frustration with the Israeli government due to its failure to address the threat posed by Hezbollah.

Israeli sites under Hezbollah fire

Earlier on Friday, Hezbollah confirmed that its fighters carried out three operations against Israeli sites and gatherings of the Israeli occupation soldiers on the border between Lebanon and occupied Palestine.

In a statement, Hezbollah reiterated that the operations come in support of the resilient Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and in solidarity with their brave and honorable Resistance. On that note, Israeli media underlined that the situation at the Lebanese border area with occupied Palestine is "extremely difficult", stressing that it would grow more difficult as time goes on.

On a related note, the Israeli Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported on Thursday that Israeli losses on the northern front are on a seamless uptick as the fighting continues and amid an increase in displacement from the Israeli settlements near the Lebanese borders.

Is that one of the reasons why Israel has begun deploying women to the frontline already?

Ynet, the newspaper's online portal, reported that fear of Hezbollah's firepower has caused extensive financial damages to northern settlers, because they are unable to work on the occupied farmland. According to the Israeli outlet, the losses amount to 500 million shekels ($131 million).

Whilst Israel has been attacking a variety of sovereign countries with impunity for a number of years now - and sometimes on the same day, such as with today's report - it seems that retaliatory attacks against Israeli and US installations and assets, are now occurring with an increasing frequency: China urges Pakistan, Iran to show 'restraint' after Tehran's airstrike against terrorist group on shared border

Commentary on the escalating situation:

Meanwhile in Gaza: