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The dead were all foreign paramilitaries fighting alongside President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
An image taken on March 5, 2020 shows an explosion following Russian airstrikes in the village of al-Bara in the southern part of northwestern Syria’s Idlib province. Image: AFP
BERUIT – Israeli missile strikes against Syria killed at least six Iranian-backed fighters on Friday, a war monitor said.
The dead were all foreign paramilitaries fighting alongside President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
The missiles, which were fired from Lebanese airspace, hit positions occupied by Iranian-backed militias in the Masyaf district of Hama province, said the head of the Observatory, Rami Abdul Rahman.
One also pointed to a government-run research facility, where surface-to-ground missiles are developed and stored, the Britain-based watchdog said.
Iranian experts are believed to work at the research center.
The Israeli military said it would not comment on foreign media reports.
The research center in Masyaf has been hit several times by Israeli attacks in recent years, the Observatory said.
According to the United States, sarin gas was being developed at the center, a claim denied by Syrian authorities, who say the country has not possessed chemical weapons since dismantling its arsenal under a 2013 agreement.
The Syrian state news agency SANA said air defenses intercepted missiles fired by Israel at Masyaf.
“Our air defenses intercepted an Israeli attack in the Masyaf area,” SANA reported.
He said air defenses hit “most” missiles before they hit their target.
State television broadcast images purporting to show air defenses in response to the Israeli attack.
Israeli activity in the skies was heard in parts of neighboring Lebanon, where many took to social media to report the Christmas Day attack.
Israel has launched hundreds of attacks in Syria since the start of the civil war in 2011.
It has targeted government troops, Iranian allied forces, and fighters from the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
He rarely confirms the details of his operations in Syria, but says Iran’s presence in support of President Bashar al-Assad is a threat he will continue to respond to.
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