Syria-Israel tensions: Israeli attacks and armed group offensives in Aleppo

Report by Toni Mrad, English adaptation by Yasmine Jaroudi

In the early hours of Friday, at around 1:45 AM, Aleppo faced severe bombardment as Israeli forces targeted multiple points in the city's countryside, according to the Syrian Defense Ministry.  

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the airstrikes, originating from the direction of Ithriyah southeast of Aleppo, struck a missile depot belonging to Hezbollah near a training center in the Jibrin area near Aleppo International Airport.  

Additionally, defense laboratories were targeted in Al-Safira, and explosions were reported in Kafr Joum, west of Aleppo.

Where did the Israeli attacks originate from?

The Jordanian army has not issued any statements confirming or denying the passage of Israeli aircraft through its airspace.

Simultaneously with the Israeli strikes, armed groups in Idlib and Aleppo countryside launched drone attacks in an attempt to target civilians in Aleppo and its surroundings, according to the Syrian Ministry of Defense.

Subsequently, the Ministry designated that the groups responsible for the countryside drone attacks are the armed groups Jabhat al-Nusra and Katibat al-Ghuraba al-Turkistan (Turkestan Islamic Party).

The violence resulted in the deaths of 38 individuals, including 33 Syrian soldiers and five Hezbollah members, notably Ahmad Jawad Shhimi, a Hezbollah leader in Syria, who is the brother of Khalil Jawad Shhimi, a commander in the Al-Radwan force, killed in an Israeli airstrike last November.

The Syrian Defense Ministry did not specify whether the high casualty count resulted from Israeli airstrikes or attacks by armed groups.

However, Iran interpreted the simultaneous Israeli strikes and armed group attacks as evidence of Tel Aviv's support for these groups in Syria.

Observers suggest that the coordinated Israeli strikes and armed group attacks in Aleppo, coupled with the proximity of civilians to the targeted areas, led to increased casualties.

According to LBCI's sources, the events of Friday do not represent a new trajectory in Israeli attacks on Syria. The sources indicated that the strikes were part of Israel's ongoing efforts to weaken Hezbollah's military capabilities in Syria and pressure it to halt its support for the Lebanese front.