Syrian state media reported on Monday that overnight Israeli strikes resulted in the death of 14 individuals in central Hama province, according to a war monitor, which indicated a higher death toll from raids on sensitive military sites. The Israeli military, which has conducted numerous strikes in Syria since the beginning of the civil war in 2011, did not comment on the latest reported attack. Syrian official news agency Sana, citing a medical source, stated: "The number of martyrs resulting from the Israeli aggression on a number of sites in the vicinity of Masyaf has risen to 14 martyrs and 43 wounded including six critically." The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reported "intense Israeli strikes" overnight, with a death toll of "18 people" including eight Syrian fighters. It also reported that 32 others were wounded.
Israeli strikes on Syria since 2011 have primarily targeted army positions and Iran-backed fighters, including those from Lebanon's Hezbollah group. Israeli authorities rarely comment on individual strikes in Syria, but have repeatedly stated that they will not allow Iran to expand its presence. Syria's Sana news agency, citing a military source, reported that at "around 11.20 pm on Sunday, the Israeli enemy carried out an air attack" from the direction of northwest Lebanon "targeting a number of military sites in the central region." Air defences "shot down some" of the missiles, according to Sana.
The Observatory stated that "Israeli strikes... targeted the scientific research area in Masyaf" in Hama province and other sites, resulting in the destruction of "buildings and military centres." The Britain-based Observatory, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria, had earlier reported that the strikes targeted sites "where pro-Iran groups and weapons development experts are stationed." It was "one of the most violent Israeli attacks" in Syria in years, according to Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman. He noted that Iranian experts "developing arms including precision missiles and drones" worked in the scientific research centre that was hit.
Nasser Kanani, spokesman for the Iranian foreign ministry, strongly condemned the "criminal attack by the Zionist regime on Syrian soil." Israeli raids on Syria increased following Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel, which sparked war in Gaza, but eased somewhat after an April 1 strike attributed to Israel hit the Iranian consular building in Damascus. Syria has attempted to remain neutral in the Israel-Hamas conflict, which has raised concerns about a broader regional war. In late August, several pro-Iranian fighters were killed in Syria's central Homs region in strikes attributed to Israel, according to the Observatory. Days later, the Israeli military reported that it had killed an unspecified number of fighters belonging to Hamas ally Islamic Jihad in a strike near the Lebanese border.
The Syrian government's brutal suppression of a 2011 uprising triggered the conflict that has resulted in the deaths of more than half a million people and drawn in foreign armies and jihadists. Iran-backed groups, including Lebanon's powerful Hezbollah movement, have supported President Bashar Al Assad's forces during Syria's civil war. Israeli raids on Syria have also aimed to cut off Hezbollah supply routes to Lebanon.
