Israeli raids on Syrian arms sites stir regional tensions
Israel is systematically conducting further attacks on military facilities in Syria. During the night of 15 to 16 December, the targets were facilities in the Tartus region, in western Syria, where Russia has its military base. The bombing resulted in an explosion so strong that seismologists detected it as an earthquake. We explain what weapons Israel might have used and what their target was.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), the recent attacks in the region were "the heaviest in over a decade." This time, the most action took place in the Tartus region, where the clan of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad originates. It is also emphasised that the Russians have one of their main bases in the city of Tartus.
A powerful explosion in Syria after an attack by Israeli air forces
SOHR reports indicate that the Israeli air force carried out raids on various facilities, including "air defence units" and "surface-to-surface missile depots."
A video documenting the massive explosion appeared on social media. The Times of Israel reported that the force of the explosion was significant enough that seismologists recorded a phenomenon resembling an earthquake with a magnitude of 3.1. A similar situation occurred in September when a large explosion of ammunition depots occurred in the Tver region in western Russia.
Israeli attacks in Syria have a specific goal
It has not been disclosed what weapons Israel used. However, attacks on Hezbollah-related targets in Lebanon and Houthi fighters in Yemen have shown that the most commonly used are modern F-35I Adir aircraft. These are stealth machines capable of carrying weapons not only from the USA but also prepared in Israel. This includes, for example, SPICE (Smart, Precise Impact, Cost-Effective) bombs or guided bombs like MLGB or MPR.
What weapons is Israel destroying in Syria?
The goal of Israeli attacks on facilities in Syria is to destroy the weapons of a country plunged into chaos so they do not reach the Lebanese Hezbollah fighting Israel. Since the overthrow of the former Syrian president's regime, starting 8 December, the Israeli military has conducted hundreds of attacks on military facilities in Syria. Last week, the Israeli army emphasised that "most of the country's strategic arms stocks have been destroyed." It has been established that as much as 90% of Syrian surface-to-air missiles have been eliminated. Among these could be non-guided missile SA-13 or guided missiles SA-6 and SA-8.
Bashar al-Assad's army primarily relied on Russian-provided equipment. Although these were primarily older weapons systems, Israeli raids and social media reports showed that MiG-29 fighters and modern air defence systems like Pantsir-S1 or Podlet-K1 radar were also used.
