Israel struck regime forces in southern Syria on Monday, causing damage but no casualties, Syrian state media reported.
According to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the strikes targeted missile batteries on the outskirts of the city of al-Ba’ath and the village of al-Krum, in Quneitra Governorate in southwestern Syria.
As is usual with reports of this type, there was no comment from the Israeli military.
Monday’s strike was the first attributed to Israel in Syria since Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Sochi, Russia, last week.
Russia became militarily involved in the Syrian civil war in 2015, seeking to stabilize the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Israel is also active in the country, where it has conducted multiple operations in an attempt to prevent Iran from entrenching itself. Under Bennett’s predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu, Russia and Israel set up a deconfliction channel to avoid military mishaps, and the Kremlin has pledged understanding for Israel’s major concerns over Iranian entrenchment.
Israel insists that its operational leeway in the area be maintained, especially as Iran tries to tighten its grip on Syria. In line with Jerusalem’s determination that it will not allow any Iranian presence near its northern border, the IDF has so far targeted hundreds of Iranian assets in Syria.
During their meeting in Sochi on Friday, Putin and Bennett agreed that the two nations would continue to maintain the deconfliction mechanism.
This article first appeared in Israel Hayom.
