Syrian air defenses were activated on Monday morning amid an alleged Israeli attack in the vicinity of Damascus, Arab media reported. Explosions were detected near the Sayyeda Zeinab shrine complex on the outskirts of the Syrian capital. Farming areas south of Damascus were also targeted due to the proximity of an IRGC stronghold. The strikes allegedly attacked an operational headquarters for the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a source in Iran’s regional alliance told Reuters. The airstrikes completely destroyed the Quds Force branch of the IRGC’s Shiite stronghold, Arab media reported.
There was no immediate comment from Syrian authorities and no statement on state media. Two Iranian Revolutionary Guards members who served as military advisors in Syria were killed in an Israeli attack, Iranian state media reported in November, in the first reported Iranian casualties during the ongoing war in Gaza.
Britain calls for de-escalation in Middle East
Following strikes in Syria and Sunday’s attacks in Jordan, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called on Iran to diffuse tension, Israeli media reported. Sunak said he was disturbed by what was happening in the Middle East, and called on the Iran to “continue to reduce” tensions in the region. The United States has also engaged Iranian forces in Syria since the beginning of the war, with November airstrikes targeting IRGC sites, including a training facility and a safe house near the cities of al-Bukamal and al-Mayadeen. The United States also killed five Iran-backed fighters in the Iraqi city of Kirkuk on a pre-emptive airstrike last week, after several attacks against US forces.
Tal Spungin, Jerusalem Post Staff, and Reuters contributed to this report. This is a developing story.