PM after Israel reportedly strikes Syria: Maybe it was Belgian air force

Seven people – four Iranians and three Syrians – were killed in an airstrike allegedly launched by the IAF on Iranian targets in the Damascus area.

FEBRUARY 15, 2020 12:29

Smoke rises past a mountain as seen from Damascus countryside, Syria December 25, 2018 (photo credit: OMAR SANADIKI/REUTERS) — Smoke rises past a mountain as seen from Damascus countryside, Syria December 25, 2018

(photo credit: OMAR SANADIKI/REUTERS)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he did not know anything about the alleged Israeli attack that targeted the Damascus area on Thursday, adding that maybe it was "the Belgian Air Force."

"I don't what happened last night," Netanyahu said in an interview with Radio Haifa on Friday, as quoted by Channel 12. "Maybe it was the Belgian Air Force."

Seven people – four Iranians and three Syrians – were killed in an airstrike reportedly launched by the IAF in the Damascus area on Thursday night, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), as quoted by Ynet. The attack was allegedly targeting Iranian ammunition depots in the city.

Syrian state television stated that Syrian air defenses downed several missiles coming across Israel's Golan Heights before they hit their targets in the capital, Damascus.

תיעוד התקיפות בדמשק והיירוטים pic.twitter.com/OKRJyPySd2
— roi kais • רועי קייס (@kaisos1987) February 13, 2020

Israel has continued to strike targets in Syria, as well as Iraq, as part of a campaign to weaken Iran and to remove its forces from the region. Netanyahu reiterated to Army Radio on Wednesday that Israel would not allow Iran to gain a foothold along the northern border, pointing out that Israel has conducted "countless" attacks to prevent this.

Last week, SANA reported that Israel had attacked military targets in western Damascus. According to SOHR, missiles have been launched at bases and positions of the Syrian army and pro-Iranian militias. It was also reported that 23 people were killed in the attack last week, including pro-Iranian militiamen.

Tzvi Joffre contributed to this report.