Two civilians killed in Israeli airstrikes in Syria

Two civilians were killed in Israeli airstrikes in Syria on Wednesday, the country’s state media reported. 

Israel announced it launched airstrikes into Syria after rockets were reportedly fired at the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights on Tuesday, The Associated Press reported. The country reported it hit dozens of Iranian and Syrian military targets.

Syrian media reported the airstrikes injured several beyond the two civilians killed. Rami Abdurrahman, the head of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told the AP that the strike killed at least 23 people, including the two civilians, five Syrian troops and 16 Iranian and Iran-backed fighters. 

Syria said its air defenses stopped most of the missiles over Damascus. The Observatory reported the attacks destroyed arms depots for Iran’s Quds force, an international branch of the Revolutionary Guards, according to the news wire.

The Israeli military reported it struck Quds surface-to-air missiles, weapons warehouses and military bases, after shooting down four rockets from Syria on Tuesday, according to the AP. The military claims Tuesday’s objective was the sixth Iranian attempt to attack Israel since February 2018.  

“I have made clear that whoever hurts us, we will hurt him,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said early on Wednesday, according to Reuters.