Israel again bombed Syria for the second time in less a week, killing at least 57 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH), in one of the bloodiest operations in recent years, which coincides with the farewell. of Donald Trump of the White House. According to the London-based OSDH, the Jewish state forces launched 18 attacks against different targets linked to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard along the Syrian-Iraqi border, between the cities of Deir Ezzor and Al Abukamal.
The official Syrian news agency SANA confirmed the bombings, citing military sources, but did not provide any balance of damage and Israel, as it usually does, neither confirmed nor denied what happened. The AP agency indicated that this time it was the United States, which has a base with troops in the area, who provided the information to the Jewish State.
This great operation was decided, according to information obtained by AP, in a meeting between the US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, with the head of the Mossad, Yossi Cohen, at the Café Milano in Washington. The main objective was a weapons warehouse used by the Iranians where, in addition to weapons, there would also be components necessary for the development of their nuclear program. These were the data leaked to the US agency by “intelligence agents” who remained anonymous.
THE KEY:
- Meeting in Washington.
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The operation was decided after the US Secretary of State met with Mossad
- In the spotlight.
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The focus of the assault was a warehouse where there was material for Tehran’s nuclear program
In recent weeks, the bombings attributed to Israel in eastern Syria have intensified. Militias made up of foreign militiamen sponsored by Iran, a staunch enemy of Tel Avid, operate in this area, in the province of Deir Ezzor, on the border with Iraq. In the attacks, according to the OSDH, 14 members of the regime forces and 43 militiamen from pro-Iranian groups were killed, including 16 Iraqis and 11 Afghans, belonging to the Fatimid Brigades.
The OSDH specified that the Fatimides brigades had transferred and unloaded in the last days in this area, coming from Iraq, shipments of weapons manufactured in Iran. According to the director of the NGO, Rami Abdul Rahman, these are the “deadliest” Israeli attacks since the conflict in Syria broke out ten years ago. In June 2018, similar bombings in this same enclave killed at least 55 pro-government fighters, including Iraqis and Syrians.
The Israeli army admitted in December to having carried out fifty operations in neighboring Syria in 2020. Consulted by this latest attack on public radio, the minister responsible for the colonies in the West Bank, Tzachi Hanegbi, declared that the Jewish state will hit targets linked to Iran in Syria “as long as our Intelligence deems it appropriate and our operational capacity makes it possible. ». On the eve of the attack, the head of the Defense of the Jewish State, Benny Gantz, had already issued a clear warning: “We continue to monitor all our borders. We have acted and will continue to act against those who try to challenge us. We are not sitting, waiting.
El-Asad’s allies
Along with Russia, the Islamic republic is the great support of the Syrian president, Bashar el-Asad, and this part of the border with Iraq, in the surroundings of Al Bukamal, is a sensitive area because it is considered the main crossing point for supplies. between Tehran and Damascus. Trump’s last days in power have raised tension in the region over the possibility of a direct attack on the Tehran regime because of its nuclear program.
“At a time when the Trump administration has its days numbered, Netanyahu tries to cause as much damage as possible in Syria to the Guardians of the Iranian revolution,” observed political analyst Nicholas Heras.
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