Israel Attacks Syrian Capital For 3rd Time Since Friday After Zelensky Claims It’s Soft On Terror

On Wednesday Israel launched yet another missile attack on Damascus, which notably marks the third one against Damascus since Friday. Significantly Friday’s attack had been the first major strike in a month – though prior to this the aerial assaults had come semi-regularly.

“Four people collaborating with Hezbollah, including one Syrian fighter, were killed in an attack attributed to Israel on Damascus’ outskirts on Wednesday overnight, in the third such strike in less than a week, according to a human rights group in Syria,” Haaretz reports. However the Syrian government didn’t confirm any casualties. 

Despite the prior lull in such brazen attacks from Israeli forces, it seem clear they are now re-escalating again, but no specific reason from Israel has been provided. 

“At around 00:30 AM (21:30 GMT), the Israeli enemy carried out an aerial aggression from the direction of the occupied Palestinian territories targeting several positions in the vicinity of Damascus,” Syria’s defense ministry said in a statement.

Similar strikes had been launched Friday and Monday, with Monday’s being a rare daytime attack that wounded a Syrian soldier. 

Damascus says of the Wednesday aggression that anti-air defenses were deployed and “confronted the missile aggression and downed most of them.”

Of broader geopolitical importance, which might provide context to the stepped-up attacks, is Ukraine’s essentially begging Israel to transfer its Iron Dome defense system and “close the skies” – as President Zelensky said this week.

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Huge explosions heard in Damascus after Israeli airstrikes. Damascenes on social media platforms say they were panicked by the sounds of the bombs. pic.twitter.com/gSjXwgoOgv

— Kevork Almassian🇸🇾🇦🇲 (@KevorkAlmassian) October 26, 2022

Zelensky in a rare display of boldness actually told a defense conference that Israel is turning “a blind eye to Russian terror”. He went so far as to say that refusing to help Kiev with anti-air systems is actually enabling an emboldened Iran as well, given the presence of Iranian suicide drones on the Ukraine battlefield. Israel has this week shut the door on Zelensky’s requests.

Israel might now be demonstrating that it remains as willing as ever to go after Iranian assets – inside Syria – which is also at the consternation of Russia, though its become clear that Moscow has been willing to look the other way while issuing vague condemnations.