The Syrian military is threatening Israel with “dangerous consequences” after Israeli Air Force jets bombed an anti-aircraft battery near Damascus earlier in the day.
On Monday morning, a Syrian air defense battery near Damascus fired an interceptor missile at Israeli reconnaissance planes during a “routine flight” over Lebanon, the Israeli military said.
In a statement, the Syrian military claims the IAF aircraft entered its airspace, which is what prompted the response. But the IDF maintains that the planes stayed over Lebanon.
The Syrian military also claims one Israeli plane was “directly hit” and “forced to flee,” though Israel says its reconnaissance planes were not struck by the interceptor missile.
In response to the anti-aircraft missile, the IAF sent out a second sortie, which targeted the anti-aircraft system and “incapacitated” the offending battery, the IDF said.
Smoke billows from buildings following a reported air strike on Ain Tarma in the Eastern Ghouta area, a rebel stronghold east of the Syrian capital, on October 16, 2017. (AFP/ AMER ALMOHIBANY)
In its statement, the Syrian military warned Israel of “dangerous consequences for its repeated attempts of aggression.”
According to the Syrian statement, the anti-aircraft battery targeted the Israeli planes at approximately 8:51 a.m., and the IAF retaliated a few hours later — essentially confirming the timeline described by the Israeli military.
— Judah Ari Gross
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
From the Liveblog of
Monday, October 16, 2017
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
