The Death Toll from Israel's Attack on Military Locations in Syria Reaches 16

Syrian state media reported on Monday that the death toll from an attack attributed to Israel on "several military locations in central Syria" on Sunday night has risen to 16. This is the deadliest attack attributed to Israel in Syrian territory since the attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1. Israel has not reacted to this incident, adhering to its policy of "neither confirming nor denying" attacks attributed to it in Syria. The official Syrian news agency, SANA, quoted a military source claiming that Israel targeted "several military locations in central Syria" at 20:11 local time on Sunday. According to this source, Syrian air defenses intercepted some of the missiles. SANA further claimed that 36 people were injured in the attack, six of whom are in serious condition. Reuters reported, citing two intelligence sources in the region, that several attacks were carried out against a major research center for chemical weapons production near Masyaf in Hama province, close to the Mediterranean coast. They suggested that a team of Iranian experts involved in the production of these weapons was present at the site during the attack. However, a military source close to the Assad government and the Iranian regime denied this narrative, claiming it was a well-known research center in Syria. The Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned the Sunday night attack as a "clear act of aggression," claiming that in addition to the 16 dead and 36 injured, "material damage was also inflicted on some residential areas." In this context, Nasser Kanani, spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, condemned the Sunday night attack, stating that reports of an attack on an Iranian or Iran-supported facility were "not confirmed." Over the past years, Israel has repeatedly been identified as the perpetrator of attacks on Iranian positions and its affiliated militias in Syria, but it rarely takes responsibility for these attacks. Since the October 7 terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel, attacks attributed to Israel against Iranian positions and its proxies in Syria have become more frequent and intense. Notable attacks include a deadly operation against Seyyed Reza Mousavi, the highest-ranking Quds Force commander in Syria, on December 25 of last year, and the devastating attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1 of this year. The rising death toll and injuries from the "Israeli airstrike" on the presence of Iran's proxies in Syria include the killing of four militants in an Israeli drone strike on a vehicle at the Syrian-Lebanese border. The Syrian state news agency reported that seven people were injured in the "Israeli" attack, and five Iranian-affiliated militants were killed in a drone strike in Syria. Reuters reported that several American soldiers were injured in a drone attack on coalition forces in Syria on Friday; the injuries were minor.