The attack was aimed at a block of flats in the Mazzeh area of Damascus, as a result of Israeli aggression, the state news agency Sana writes.
The Syrian human rights organization Syrian Observatory for Human Rights states that the death toll has risen to ten after several dead have been found in the ruins on Saturday afternoon.
Among those killed are four members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, the Revolutionary Guard confirms in a statement on Saturday.
One of them is to be the Iranian Revolutionary Guard’s Syrian intelligence chief, according to the Iranian news agency Mehr. In addition, several were injured, according to local hospital sources.
The building that was hit was used by Iranian advisers who support the Syrian government, and it has been virtually razed to the ground. The Mazzeh area of Damascus is a high-security area for leaders of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
Israel is accused of being behind the attack.
– We do not comment on reports from foreign media, says the Israeli army when asked by the AFP news agency.
Embassy area
In the area there are several embassies, as well as a headquarters for the UN.
On Saturday, a meeting was planned there with leaders who support Iran, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
It must have been an Israeli rocket that hit the residential block in Damascus on Saturday.
Photo: Reuters
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard is part of Iran’s armed forces and was established in 1979, as an independent force in Iran. The Revolutionary Guard reports directly to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Israeli attacks
Israel has long waged a bombing campaign against Iran-linked targets in Syria and Lebanon, but the attacks have become more deadly over time.
In December, General Razi Moussavi of the Revolutionary Guard’s foreign arm, the Quds Forces, was killed by the Israeli army. It was the most senior commander killed outside Iran since a US drone killed Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020. In December, 23 pro-Iranian soldiers were killed in what was probably an Israeli airstrike in eastern Syria.
It has long been a concern that the war in Gaza will escalate into a major war in the region.
Iran supports Hamas, which attacked Israel on October 7. After that, Israel invaded Gaza and promised to crush Hamas on all fronts.
Iran also supports the Lebanese Hezbollah militia, which in turn supports Hamas. There are almost daily clashes between Israel and Hezbollah on the border between Israel and Lebanon.
In addition, Iran supports the Houthi movement in Yemen, which for a long time has affected shipping in the Red Sea, as a protest against Israel’s war against Hamas.
Iran is America’s arch-enemy in the Middle East, and plays a key role in whether the war between Israel and Hamas is to escalate further.
2024-01-20 13:40:16
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