According to a war monitor, an Israeli air assault on Syria’s Aleppo region killed at least 36 Syrian soldiers on Friday, and the location also contained Hezbollah weapons stores.
According to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the Israeli attack targeted an area “near rocket depots belonging to the Lebanese group Hezbollah.” The Observatory has an extensive network of informants in Syria.
“At least 36 soldiers were killed and dozens wounded,” the statement claimed.
Syrian state news agency SANA reported that the pre-dawn strike killed and injured civilians as well as military personnel.
A Syrian military source informed SANA that “at approximately 1:45 am, the Israeli enemy launched an air attack from the direction of Athriya, southeast of Aleppo,” adding that “civilians and military personnel” were killed and injured in the strike.
When contacted by AFP from Jerusalem, the Israeli military stated that it would “not comment on reports in the foreign media”.
Israel has undertaken hundreds of air attacks on Syrian targets since the civil conflict began in 2011, primarily targeting Iran-backed elements such as fighters from Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement and Syrian army sites.
The strikes have intensified since Israel launched its conflict with the Palestinian militant group Hamas, a Hezbollah affiliate, on October 7.