Sana’s report cited a Syrian military source as saying that Israeli aircraft flying over north-western Lebanon launched missiles at “a number of military sites in the central region” at around 23:20 (20:20 GMT) on Sunday.
“Our air defence shot down some missiles,” the military source added.
The news agency said the strikes also caused damage to the Masyaf-Wadi al-Oyoun highway and that a fire broke out in the forested Hair Abbas area.
Later, the Syrian foreign ministry said the attack had targeted “several residential areas”, while local authorities reported that key infrastructure had been damaged, including a fibre optic cable running underneath the highway and a high-voltage power line, according to Sana.
State-run Al-Ikhbariya al-Suriyah TV also broadcast footage purportedly showing a damaged building in the port city of Tartous, west of Masyaf.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) – a UK-based monitoring group with a network of sources on the ground – reported that Israeli strikes destroyed buildings and military facilities in “the scientific research area in Masyaf”, on the Masyaf-Wadi al-Oyoun highway and in Hair Abbas.
It said at least 26 people were killed, including five civilians, four members of Syrian government forces and 14 Syrians working with pro-Iran groups. Another three bodies were unidentified, it added.
The SOHR said Iranian Revolutionary Guards officers had been stationed in the scientific research area for six years as part of a programme to develop short- and medium-range precision missiles and drones.
However, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani told reporters in Tehran: “We do not confirm what was reported by media outlets linked to the Zionist regime [Israel] about an attack on an Iranian centre or a centre under Iran’s protection.”
Source link
