Estimates: No Israeli involvement in alleged overnight Syria strike
Arab media had earlier attributed strike overnight Monday to the IAF.
By JPOST.COM STAFFIAF F-16 fighter jet(photo credit: IDF SPOKESMAN'S OFFICE)
A reported overnight air strike on Hezbollah and military sites in Syria did not appear to be linked to Israel, according to estimates Monday.Arab media reported earlier Monday that Israel Air Force jets had struck suspected Hezbollah and Syrian army weapons caches in Syria before dawn, days after a separate alleged Israeli strike was said to have targeted Syrian military bases housing long-range missiles on Saturday .The IDF said it had no comment on the foreign reports.According to the pan-Arab TV station Al Jeezera, the most recent alleged attack took place in the al-Qalamoun region just north of Damascus.The report indicated that there were causalities in the strike.Meanwhile, the Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya television network reported that the target of the strike was a military post manned by soldiers from the 155th Brigade of the Syrian armed forces - the outfit that is believed to have been involved in the delivery of Scud missiles to Hezbollah.The purported attack comes hours after the IAF struck and killed four terrorists who crossed into Israel from Syria and planted explosives near an abandoned IDF post on Sunday night.On Saturday, Al Jazeera reported on another alleged IAF strike on Syrian military bases housing long-range missiles.According to the report, the bases, near the Syrian-Lebanese border, belong to Assad regime brigades that possess weapons such as Scud missiles. The attacks allegedly targeted multiple targets in the area.The IDF also provided no comment on that report.
However, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon hinted on Sunday that Israel was capable of carrying out the strike, stressing that Jerusalem would not tolerate the transfer of advanced weaponry to its enemies.The defense minister stated that Iran was attempting to arm terror groups in the region, including Hezbollah and Hamas."We will not allow Iran and Hezbollah to set up terrorist infrastructure on our border with Syria, and we will know how to place our hands on anyone who threatens Israeli civilians, along the borders, or far from them," he said at an address to mark Israel’s 67th Independence Day at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv.Yaakov Lappin contributed to this report.
