Israel strikes Syria’s capital Damascus

TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel on Wednesday conducted airstrikes in downtown Damascus, the Syrian capital.

The Israeli military said the targets included a Syrian government military compound in Damascus as well as another military target near the Syrian presidential palace.

Syrian official news outlet SANA said at least 13 people were injured from the strikes.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz posted a video on X of a TV news live shot in Damascus in which a building is seen exploding behind the presenter. “The painful strikes have begun,” Katz wrote.

The strikes came amid ongoing tensions in southwest Syria, home to the minority Druze, whose community straddles the border between Israel-occupied Golan Heights and Syria. The Syrian military joined Bedouin militias in clashes against the Druze.

Israel struck the Syrian military there on Monday and Tuesday in what they said was an effort to protect the Druze and keep the Syrian side of the border demilitarized.

This is a developing story that will be updated.

 

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