Iranian-backed forces massing around Deir Ezzor city
The Allies of Syria Operations Room, which commands Iranian-backed forces in Syria, has vowed to response “very harshly” to the October 13 Israeli airstrikes that targeted the outskirts of the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra.
In a statement released on October 14, the operations room revealed that the Israeli airstrikes had destroyed several barracks and a service center of Iranian-backed forces.
Israeli warplanes launched the airstrikes from the southeastern Syrian area of al-Tanf, which is occupied by the US-led coalition, after sneaking along the Jordanian border.
“As a result of this aggression, a number of our Mujahedeen brothers were martyred or wounded,” the statement reads.
The operation room didn’t provide an exact death toll. However, it said that the number of casualties would have been greater if it was not for precautionary measures.
A Syrian military source acknowledged that a service member was killed and three others were wounded in the aerial attack. Activist also reported that two Iranian-backed Syrian fighters were killed.
“The command of the operation room has taken the decision to respond to this aggression to avenge the souls of the martyrs and the blood of the wounded, and the response will be very harsh,” the operations room said in a statement.
This was the second Israeli attack on central Syria this month. On October 8, a series of airstrike hit the country’s largest air base, known as the T-4, in the eastern Homs countryside. The base hosts the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ main weapons supply center in Syria.
Iranian-backed forces responded in the past to Israeli attacks on their positions in Syria. The Israeli military will likely take their threats very seriously.
