Israeli Military in Syria & the Gaza Strip

Israeli Military in Syria & the Gaza Strip

A child uses his mobile device in the ruins of a building in Beit Lahia, Gaza Strip on May 26th 2021. © Mohamed Zaanoun

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Incident Code

ISSY-120419

Incident date

April 13, 2019

Location

مصياف, Massyaf, Hama, Syria

Airwars assessment

At least one belligerent was killed and between six and 17 were injured in alleged Israeli strikes on the town of Massyaf in the Hama Countryside between April 12th and April 13th, 2019.

Arab News quoted Syrian Arab News Agency as stating “an Israeli airstrike on a military position in central Syria early Saturday wounded six soldiers and destroyed several buildings” and quoted Syrian Observatory for Human Rights as stating “the airstrikes hit three targets, wounding 17 Syrian soldiers. It said there were also deaths, but it was not immediately clear how many were killed and whether they were Iranians or Iran-sponsored fighters.”

Step News included details “URGENT Initial reports speak of one dead and six wounded from the army of the regime as a result of Israeli raids on the area of Musayaf west of Hama,.”

In addition, “around 2:30 a.m. … the Israeli air force carried out a strike targeting one of our military positions in the town of Misyaf,” in Hama province north of Damascus, SANA quoted a military source as saying.

Euphrates Post reported “Israeli air strikes on the College of Accounting and Administration in the city of Misyaf in the western countryside of Hama, killing and wounding a number of elements inside the camp.” A post from Free deir ezzor radio identified the camps as “where the Iranian militias are holding training courses for its elements.”

Tweets from @ImageSatIntl showed “#Before,12 April, & #After ,13 April, few hours after the #strike in #Masyaf, #Syria. Completely destroyed structures which were (according to #OSINT) #missiles  manufacturing hangars, related to #Iran. See here the #before and #after.”

The incident occured at 02:30:00 local time.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    No
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Suspected attacker
    Israeli Military
  • Suspected targets
    Assad regime, Iranian military
  • Belligerents reported killed
    1
  • Belligerents reported injured
    6–17

Sources (8) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (6) [ collapse]

  • Caption translation: Israeli raids targeted the Camp Pioneers in the area of Sheikh Ghadban in the vicinity of Musayaf West Hama, where the Iranian militias are holding training courses for its elements Other raids targeted military positions of the regime near the town of Tlalkh Breef # Homs al-Gharbi amid the sound of violent explosions that shook the area (Image posted by Free deir ezzor radio via Facebook)
  • Caption translation: Israeli raids targeted the Camp Pioneers in the area of Sheikh Ghadban in the vicinity of Musayaf West Hama, where the Iranian militias are holding training courses for its elements Other raids targeted military positions of the regime near the town of Tlalkh Breef # Homs al-Gharbi amid the sound of violent explosions that shook the area (Image posted by Free deir ezzor radio via Facebook)
  • The #SSM factory is located in the vicinity of other facilities which according to #OSINT are related to the #Iranian SSM project in #Syria. (Image posted by @ImageSatIntl)
  • If the attacked factory is indeed controlled by #Iran, it is probable that at least the eastern part of the “#syrian” base it controlled by them. #Syria #Masyaf #SSM #ISI (Image posted by @ImageSatIntl)
  • If the #bombed site in #Masyaf, #Syria, was indeed a #missile factory, it could allow production and assembly of different #SSM elements or for improving the #accuracy of missiles. #ISI #Iran #VISINT #IMINT (Image posted by @ImageSatIntl)

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    No
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Suspected attacker
    Israeli Military
  • Suspected targets
    Assad regime, Iranian military
  • Belligerents reported killed
    1
  • Belligerents reported injured
    6–17

Sources (8) [ collapse]

Incident Code

ISSY002a

Incident date

May 8, 2018

Location

الكسوة, Al Kiswah, Damascus, Syria

Geolocation

33.361391, 36.247927 Note: The accuracy of this location is to City level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

At least two civilians, a man and a woman, were killed in alleged Israeli airstrikes on Al Kisswa on May 8, 2018.

According to Euphrates Post, Israeli forces targeted positions of the Assad regime in Al Kisswa on May 8, 2018. They also posted a video from a surveillance cameras of one of the commercial establishments that shows the moment of the strikes on Al Kisswa.

Smart News reported that the Syrian regime’s media said that “Israel targeted with two missiles in the area of ​​Kisswa in the Syrian countryside about two hours after the announcement of the United States of America to withdraw from the nuclear agreement with Iran” and activists added that the missiles were targeting the Iranian Revolutionary Guard headquarters in the area.

Shaam News quoted an announcement from the regime that they had intercepted and destroyed two Israeli missiles in the Al Kisswa area.

Smart News also quoted Reuters as saying that the bombing was intended for the Assad regime headquarters “without causing dead and wounded”.

However, Syrian Network for Human Rights reported that Hedaya Samir Al-Faouri and Hisham Hamdi Mazal Aldairi were killed in Israeli airstrikes on Al Kisswa.

Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also identified “a man and his wife were killed near place of shelling but the circumstances of their deaths are not known whether they were killed the result of a traffic accident, or it happened that they were there in the moment of shelling which caused their deaths”.

Israel did not make any official statement about the strike.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • (1 woman1 man)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attacker
    Israeli Military
  • Suspected target
    Assad regime

Sources (7) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (2) [ collapse]

  • Video shows the fire caused by targeting the positions of the forces of the Assad regime in al Kisswa by the Israeli occupation army a short while ago
  • A recording from the surveillance cameras of one of the commercial establishments recorded the moment of the Israeli missiles falling in the area of Al-Keswa.

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the city of Al Kiswah (الكسوة), for which the generic coordinates are: 33.361391, 36.247927. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • (1 woman1 man)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attacker
    Israeli Military
  • Suspected target
    Assad regime

Sources (7) [ collapse]

Incident Code

ISSY009

Incident date

April 27, 2020

Location

الحجيرة , Al Hujayra, Damascus, Syria

Geolocation

33.43897, 36.31820 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Village level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

At least two civilians, including a woman, were killed and three others, including a 6-year-old child, were injured in alleged Israeli airstrikes on the town of Al Hujayra, Damascus countryside, on April 27th, 2020, according to local sources. Other sources stated that the civilians died due to remnants of anti-aircraft missiles fired by the Syrian regime.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that “three civilians were martyred and others were wounded, as a result of shrapnel of missile fragments on their homes in the Adliya and Al Hujayra regions of the southern countryside of Damascus.” The source, however, stated it was not known “whether the shrapnel was caused by Israeli missiles, or by the air defence missiles of the Syrian regime”.

The regime-controlled Syrian Arab News Agency reported that “enemy missile fragments landed in the populated towns of “Al Hujayra” and “Al Adliya”, which caused the death of three civilians, and the injury of three others, including a six-year-old child.”

Haaretz News quoted local sources as saying that “Four members of a pro-Iran militia and three civilians were killed in an Israeli air strike on a Damascus suburb in the early hours of Monday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Syria’s official news agency SANA earlier reported three civilians had been killed and four injured, including a child.” However, they did not specify which location these casualties occurred.

In an article, SANA quoted the governor of Quneitra, Hammam Dabiyat, who stated that Israeli forces had targeted civilians homes in the town, killing a man and his wife, and wounding three others, including a child.

SANA also quoted the governor of Damascus countryside, Alaa Ibrahim, who further specified that the house of a displaced family from the city of Quneitra was targeted, “which led to the death of the husband and his wife, and the injury of their child and another person and the wife’s mother. The injured were treated at Al Mujtahid Hospital, while a woman died in the Al Adliya area as a result of the aggression.”

Dr Salah Ismail, head of the ambulance department at the Al Mujtahid hospital, stated that ” three cases of people from one family with injuries and wounds arrived at the hospital this morning from the Hujayraarea.” Two of the victims were lightly injured, while the third case, a child, remained under medical observation.

Shaam News Network, however, reported that the civilians were killed and injured “by shrapnel from remnants of anti-aircraft missiles from the regime’s militias, coinciding with the Israeli warplanes carrying out airstrikes on Iranian militia positions at dawn today, April 27, according to the expectations of identical local sources.”

Shaam furthermore reported, according to local courses, that “eight Israeli airstrikes were carried out by Israeli planes targeting the sites of the regime and Iranian militias in the Syrian capital, Damascus, and its surroundings, at dawn today, without revealing the size of the human and material losses inflicted on the locations of the targeted militias”.

The incident occured at approximately 5:00 am local time.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2 – 3
  • (1 woman1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    3–4
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Israeli Military, Syrian Regime
  • Suspected targets
    Assad regime, Iranian military
  • Belligerents reported killed
    4

Sources (29) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (7) [ collapse]

  • Damaged building after alleged Israeli airstrikes on Al Hujayra or Al Adliya on April 27th, 2020 (via SANA).
  • Translation: “Three civilians were killed and three others were wounded in the towns of Al Hujayra and Adliya, as a result of the Israeli aggression” (via SANA).
  • Alleged Israeli strikes on a southern Damascus suburb on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Israel Hayom, attributed to Syrian Arab News Agency)
  • Explosions over Damascus during alleged Israeli strike on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Ynet News)
  • Damage caused by an Israeli strike on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Ynet News)
  • Alleged Israeli strikes on a southern Damascus suburb on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Kan News)
  • Alleged Israeli strikes on a southern Damascus suburb on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Kan News)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the village of Al Hujayra (الحجيرة), for which the generic coordinates are: 33.43897, 36.31820. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Syrian Regime Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Syrian Regime
  • Syrian Regime position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2 – 3
  • (1 woman1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    3–4
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Israeli Military, Syrian Regime
  • Suspected targets
    Assad regime, Iranian military
  • Belligerents reported killed
    4

Sources (29) [ collapse]

Incident Code

ISSY030

Incident date

February 19, 2023

Location

المزرعة, Al Mazra, Damascus, Syria

Geolocation

33.526388, 36.297152 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Nearby landmark level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

A woman was killed and others were wounded by alleged Israeli airstrikes or Syrian regime anti-aircraft missiles which struck Al Mazra neighborhood in Damascus on February 19, 2023.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a woman was killed at the Al Mazra roundabout in Damascus by Israeli missiles. A tweet from @alhaidar990 reported that a pharmacist named Lillian Odeh was killed in the Al Mazra district of Damascus. Orient News added that “other people” were injured, in additional to material damage.

Sources were conflicted as to who was responsible for the civilian casualties, with the majority of sources attributing the casualties to the Israeli airstrikes while Orient News blamed the anti-aircraft missiles launched by the Syrian regime for killing a woman and injuring other people.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Lillian Odeh ليليان عودة
Age unknown female killed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Contested strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 woman)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Israeli Military, Syrian Regime

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the Al Mazra (المزرعة) roundabout, for which the generic coordinates are: 33.526376, 36.297152. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Syrian Regime Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Syrian Regime
  • Syrian Regime position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Contested strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 woman)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Israeli Military, Syrian Regime

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Incident Code

ISSY-170519

Incident date

May 17, 2019

Location

دمشق, Damascus, Syria

Airwars assessment

Alleged Israeli air strikes were launched against Damascus on May 17, 2019.

According to Euphrates Post, “Israeli air raids targeted the Assad regime sites shortly before the capital Damascus, air raids targeted the headquarters of the first division in the city of Al-Keswa, in conjunction with the launch of surface-to-air missiles from the air defense bases of the regime.”

No estimates of casualties or any other information is available at this time.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Single source claim
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    No
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Suspected attacker
    Israeli Military
  • Suspected target
    Assad regime

Sources (1) [ collapse]

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Single source claim
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    No
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Suspected attacker
    Israeli Military
  • Suspected target
    Assad regime

Sources (1) [ collapse]

Incident Code

ISSY020

Incident date

November 24, 2021

Location

حمص, Homs, Syria

Geolocation

34.725548, 36.710839 Note: The accuracy of this location is to City level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Up to two civilians were killed and another was injured in alleged Israeli airstrikes on Homs on November 24, 2021. Conflicting reports were given as to whether two of the people killed were civilians, with up to three others being identified as members of the regime forces.

The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), a regime-controlled media source, reported that two civilians were killed and another civilian was injured, in addition to six soldiers who were injured in alleged Israeli airstrikes at 1:26am. The source added that the Syrian air defenses had shot down most of the missiles.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) gave a conflicting report that “the death toll in the targeting rose to 5, two of the militias loyal to the Lebanese Hezbollah, whose nationality has not yet been known, and 3 members of the regime forces. Both of them were in civilian clothes during the targeting, and it turned out that they were soldiers later on.”

A Facebook post from Free Dier Azour Radio named the three members of the regime forces that were killed: Sultan Qilih, Zine El Abidine Qataz, Ibrahim Karim.

SOHR added that the killings were a result of both the Israeli airstrikes and the remnants of missiles from the “air battle between the regime’s air defenses and the Israeli missiles” and specified that he Israeli targeting caused the death of at least 4 people and the injury of others, two of them were killed in the western suburbs, and two were killed as a result of the fall of the remnants of missiles, without specifying if this occurred in a different location.

AFP quoted the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights as saying that the strikes occurred in an area near three villages in the west of Homs province. A Facebook post from Nors Studies identified the location of one of the strikes as occurring near Kabash Gas Station on Lebanon Road.

Jerusalem Post quoted opposition-affiliated Halab Today TV that “10 members of Hezbollah were injured after a site the movement uses as a military headquarters and to store logistical equipment was targeted in the airstrikes.” The source also quoted Al-Araby Al-Jadeed in reporting that “at least 10 missiles hit positions belonging to Syrian regime forces west of the city of Homs, causing casualties among civilians, Syrian soldiers and Iran-backed militants. One of the sites targeted was located in the Syrian Gas Company, according to the report. The two civilians were reportedly killed by a missile that hit a civilian area near a gas station west of Homs.”

AFP reported that the Israeli military declined to comment on “reports in the foreign media.”

The incident occured at 01:26:00 local time.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    0 – 2
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Israeli Military
  • Suspected targets
    Assad regime, Hezbollah
  • Belligerents reported killed
    3–5
  • Belligerents reported injured
    6–10

Sources (13) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (4) [ collapse]

  • Funeral for the three members of the Syrian regime forces killed in alleged Israeli airstrikes on November 24, 2021. (Image posted by Free Dier Azour Radio)
  • Funeral for the three members of the Syrian regime forces killed in alleged Israeli airstrikes on November 24, 2021. (Image posted by Free Dier Azour Radio)
  • Funeral for the three members of the Syrian regime forces killed in alleged Israeli airstrikes on November 24, 2021. (Image posted by Free Dier Azour Radio)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention strikes on the western suburbs of Homs (حمص), for which the generic coordinates are: 34.725548, 36.710839. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    0 – 2
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Israeli Military
  • Suspected targets
    Assad regime, Hezbollah
  • Belligerents reported killed
    3–5
  • Belligerents reported injured
    6–10

Sources (13) [ collapse]

Incident Code

ISSY010

Incident date

April 27, 2020

Location

العادلية, Al Adliya, Damascus, Syria

Geolocation

33.373980, 36.347236 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Village level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

A woman was killed in alleged Israeli airstrikes on the town of Al Adliya, Damascus countryside, on April 27th, 2020, according to local sources. Other sources stated that civilians died due to remnants of anti-aircraft missiles fired by the Syrian regime.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that “three civilians were martyred and others were wounded, as a result of shrapnel of missile fragments on their homes in the Al Adliya and Al Hujayra regions of the southern countryside of Damascus.” The source, however, stated it was not known “whether the shrapnel was caused by Israeli missiles, or by the air defence missiles of the Syrian regime”.

While several sources reported three killed and three injured civilians in both Al Huyajra and Al Adliya, others specified how many casualties fell in each town. Several sources stated that two civilians were killed and three others, including a six-year-old, were injured in a similar incident in the town of Al Huyajra, approximately seven kilometres away from Al Adliya, while a woman was killed in Al Adliya.

Haaretz News quoted local sources as saying that “Four members of a pro-Iran militia and three civilians were killed in an Israeli air strike on a Damascus suburb in the early hours of Monday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Syria’s official news agency SANA earlier reported three civilians had been killed and four injured, including a child.” However, they did not specify which location these casualties occurred.

The regime-controlled Syrian Arab News Agency, for example, wrote that “a woman died in the Al Adliya area as a result of the aggression.”

Shaam News Network, however, reported that the civilians in Al Adliya and Al Hujayra were killed and injured “by shrapnel from remnants of anti-aircraft missiles from the regime’s militias, coinciding with the Israeli warplanes carrying out airstrikes on Iranian militia positions at dawn today, April 27, according to the expectations of identical local sources.”

Shaam furthermore reported, according to local courses, that “eight Israeli airstrikes were carried out by Israeli planes targeting the sites of the regime and Iranian militias in the Syrian capital, Damascus, and its surroundings, at dawn today, without revealing the size of the human and material losses inflicted on the locations of the targeted militias”.

The incident occured at approximately 5:00 am local time.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 woman)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Israeli Military, Syrian Regime
  • Suspected targets
    Assad regime, Iranian military

Sources (31) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (7) [ collapse]

  • Damaged building after alleged Israeli airstrikes on Al Hujayra or Al Adliya on April 27th, 2020 (via SANA).
  • Translation: “Three civilians were killed and three others were wounded in the towns of Al Hujayra and Adliya, as a result of the Israeli aggression” (via SANA).
  • Alleged Israeli strikes on a southern Damascus suburb on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Israel Hayom, attributed to Syrian Arab News Agency)
  • Explosions over Damascus during alleged Israeli strike on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Ynet News)
  • Damage caused by an Israeli strike on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Ynet News)
  • Alleged Israeli strikes on a southern Damascus suburb on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Kan News)
  • Alleged Israeli strikes on a southern Damascus suburb on April 27, 2020. (Image posted by Kan News)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the village of Al Adliya (العادلية), for which the generic coordinates are: 33.373980, 36.347236. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Syrian Regime Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Syrian Regime
  • Syrian Regime position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 woman)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Israeli Military, Syrian Regime
  • Suspected targets
    Assad regime, Iranian military

Sources (31) [ collapse]

Incident Code

ISSY031

Incident date

February 19, 2023

Location

قلعة دمشق, Damascus castle, Damascus, Syria

Airwars assessment

A guard at a historical site in Damascus was injured by allegedIsraeli airstrikes or Syrian regime anti-aircraft missiles on February 19, 2023.

The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), Syrian regime-run news source, reported that Israeli airstrikes hit Damascus ancient castle, causing the injury of one of its guards on duty. SANA added that in addition to severe material damage to the buildings and administrative offices in the castle, the airstrikes caused destruction in the Technical Institute for Applied Arts and the Technical Institute for Archeology.

Sources were conflicted as to who was responsible for the casualties, with Damascus Voice quoting civil sources who blamed the damage on the air defenses while SANA attributed the damage to Israel.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Contested strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Weak
    Single source claim, though sometimes featuring significant information.
  • Suspected attackers
    Israeli Military, Syrian Regime

Sources (3) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (6) [ collapse]

  • Damage to the Damascus castle and citadel on February 19, 2023. (Image posted by Damascus Voice via Facebook)
  • Damage to the Damascus castle and citadel on February 19, 2023. (Image posted by Damascus Voice via Facebook)
  • Damage to the Damascus castle and citadel on February 19, 2023. (Image posted by Damascus Voice via Facebook)
  • Damage to the Damascus castle and citadel on February 19, 2023. (Image posted by Damascus Voice via Facebook)
  • Buildings belonging to the ancient #Damascus Citadel were damaged due to the Israeli bombing

Israeli Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Israeli Military
  • Israeli Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Syrian Regime Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Syrian Regime
  • Syrian Regime position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Contested strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Weak
    Single source claim, though sometimes featuring significant information.
  • Suspected attackers
    Israeli Military, Syrian Regime

Sources (3) [ collapse]