Media reports say Israel hit a convoy transporting weapons inside Syria near the Lebanese border.
ed note–those wondering when the flashpoint would arrive may find this to be it. This is an extremely dangerous development, and particularly given teh recent statement by Iran that an attack on Syria would be viewed as an attack on Iran.
Israel has conducted an airstrike inside Syria near the border with Lebanon, hitting a convoy of trucks, US and regional officials say.
“The target was a truck loaded with weapons, heading from Syria to Lebanon,” said one Western diplomat on Wednesday.
A source among rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said an air strike around dawn (0430 GMT) on Wednesday blasted a convoy on a mountain track about 5 kilometres south of where the main Damascus-Beirut highway crosses the border.
The regional officials said Israel had been planning in the days leading up to the airstrike to hit a shipment of weapons bound for Hezbollah in Lebanon.
They said the shipment included sophisticated, Russian-made SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles, which would be strategically “game-changing” in the hands of Hezbollah.
A US official confirmed the overnight strike hitting a convoy of trucks.
All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss the strike.
No comments
The Israeli military declined to comment, and Syrian officials and state media were silent on the issue.
Al Jazeera’s Rula Amin, reporting from Beirut, said that there has yet to be any word from the Syrian government, despite the press reports circulating.
“It also shows the Israelis are very concerned that Syria’s weapons could fall into the hands of either Hezbollah, or groups like Al Qaeda,” she said.
US officials say they are tracking Syria’s chemical weapons and that they still appear to be solidly under regime control.
Among Israeli security officials’ chief fears is that Hezbollah could get its hands on Syrian chemical arms and SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles.
If that were to happen, it would change the balance of power in the region and greatly hinder Israel’s ability to conduct air violations in Lebanon.
Earlier this week, Israel moved a battery of its new “Iron Dome” rocket defense system to the northern city of Haifa, which was battered by Hezbollah rocket fire in the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war.
The Israeli army called that move “routine.”
Airspace violation
The military in Lebanon, which shares borders with both Israel and Syria, said on Wednesday that Israeli warplanes have sharply increased their activity over Lebanon in the past week, including at least 12 sorties in less than 24 hours in the country’s south.
A senior Lebanese security official said there were no Israeli airstrikes inside Lebanese territory. Asked whether it could have been along the border on the Syrian side, he said that that could not be confirmed as it was out of his area of operations.
He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.
A Lebanese army statement said the last of the airspace violations took place at 2 am local time on Wednesday. It said four warplanes which flew in over the southernmost coastal town of Naqoura hovered for several hours over villages in southern Lebanon before leaving Lebanese airspace.
It said similar flights by eight other warplanes were conducted on Tuesday.
A Lebanese security official said the flights were part of “increased activity” in the past week but did not elaborate. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to brief the media.
The area of Lebanon where the flights took place borders southern Syria.
Israeli violations of Lebanese airspace occur on a daily basis and Lebanese authorities routinely lodge complaints at the UN against the flights.
Syria confirms Israeli airstrike
The Syrian army said an Israeli airstrike targeted a military research center near Damascus.
By Al Jazeera” –
January 30, 2013 — The Syrian army said that an Israeli air strike at dawn targeted a military research centre in Jamraya, near Damascus.
“Israeli fighter jets violated our air space at dawn today and carried out a direct strike on a scientific research centre in charge of raising our level of resistance and self-defence,” the army’s general command said in a statement carried by state news agency SANA.
Earlier on Wednesday, reports emerged that Israel had conducted an airstrike inside Syria near the border with Lebanon, hitting a convoy of trucks, US and regional officials said.
“The target was a truck loaded with weapons, heading from Syria to Lebanon,” said one Western diplomat on Wednesday.
A source among rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said an air strike around dawn (0430 GMT) on Wednesday blasted a convoy on a mountain track about 5 kilometres south of where the main Damascus-Beirut highway crosses the border.
The regional officials said Israel had been planning in the days leading up to the airstrike to hit a shipment of weapons bound for Hezbollah in Lebanon.
They said the shipment included sophisticated, Russian-made SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles, which would be strategically “game-changing” in the hands of Hezbollah.
A US official confirmed the overnight strike hitting a convoy of trucks.
All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss the strike.
No comments
The Israeli military declined to comment, and Syrian officials and state media were silent on the issue.
Al Jazeera’s Rula Amin, reporting from Beirut, said that there has yet to be any word from the Syrian government, despite the press reports circulating.
“It also shows the Israelis are very concerned that Syria’s weapons could fall into the hands of either Hezbollah, or groups like Al Qaeda,” she said.
US officials say they are tracking Syria’s chemical weapons and that they still appear to be solidly under regime control.
Among Israeli security officials’ chief fears is that Hezbollah could get its hands on Syrian chemical arms and SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles.
If that were to happen, it would change the balance of power in the region and greatly hinder Israel’s ability to conduct air violations in Lebanon.
Earlier this week, Israel moved a battery of its new “Iron Dome” rocket defense system to the northern city of Haifa, which was battered by Hezbollah rocket fire in the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war.
The Israeli army called that move “routine.”
Airspace violation
The military in Lebanon, which shares borders with both Israel and Syria, said on Wednesday that Israeli warplanes have sharply increased their activity over Lebanon in the past week, including at least 12 sorties in less than 24 hours in the country’s south.
A senior Lebanese security official said there were no Israeli airstrikes inside Lebanese territory. Asked whether it could have been along the border on the Syrian side, he said that that could not be confirmed as it was out of his area of operations.
He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.
A Lebanese army statement said the last of the airspace violations took place at 2 am local time on Wednesday. It said four warplanes which flew in over the southernmost coastal town of Naqoura hovered for several hours over villages in southern Lebanon before leaving Lebanese airspace.
It said similar flights by eight other warplanes were conducted on Tuesday.
A Lebanese security official said the flights were part of “increased activity” in the past week but did not elaborate. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to brief the media.
The area of Lebanon where the flights took place borders southern Syria.
Israeli violations of Lebanese airspace occur on a daily basis and Lebanese authorities routinely lodge complaints at the UN against the flights.
#1 by annebeck58 on January 31, 2013 - 7:40 pm
Hang on there, as reports from Syria (as well as photos- but who knows if it’s pics of this actual event?) stated that it has nothing to do with any caravan of trucks. According to the more recent reports (last night), the Israelis hit a, “scientific research center” (a building), and the post poo-poo’d any notion of trucks.
Yet, FAUX news (online) was still trying to go with the trucks on the move and carrying some sort of weapons to Hezbollah trash.
Wonder who’ll post the final word on this one?
And, what will Iran and the Russian do, if anything?
This is an act of war, after all… Are they going to jump in?
#2 by annebeck58 on January 31, 2013 - 7:41 pm
(OH, and I was not calling Hezbollah, :”trash”.. just calling that stor trash.)
I totally like Hezbollah for having the guts to take out the punks.
#3 by Nancy on January 31, 2013 - 11:17 pm
Why are Israeli planes not shot down when they violate other nation’s airspace? Imagine if an enemy plane was flying over Israel or the US, or virtually any other nation.
#4 by Albert on January 31, 2013 - 11:57 pm
The English dictionary has to urgently adapt a new definition: SELF OFFENSE.
“The act of ending or damaging another form of life without a realisctic or common sense based reason as a result of serious lobotomy”.
Something like that.
#5 by Mike on February 1, 2013 - 12:02 am
Sorry for the language but some countries need to quit being FU***** PUSSIES!!!! Libya, Iraq, Egypt and Syria allow themselves to be bombed at will. Just straight cowards. Dimona should have been destroyed years ago. But nooooo! Crying to the UN has not accomplished a single thing. Russia and China aren’t gonna do a damned thing. Iran, Syria and Lebanon need to realize this. Russia just sits and watches while their borders are encroached on day by day. Wake up everybody! Russia will not do *hit.
#6 by Mike on February 1, 2013 - 12:08 am
Iraq and Syria invested millions of dollars in air defenses yet they don’t do $hit when they are attacked. WAKE UP!!!!!
#7 by annebeck58 on February 1, 2013 - 2:08 am
Mike; I completely agree.
I am SO sick of the little bastard-state going as they do at civilians, particularly children and all unarmed adults, regardless of age or gender, and NOBODY does a thing to help the people of Palestine.
It’s such a frustrating position to be in, from this side of the world, with no way to convince anyone to help these people.
Then again, we can’t even stop OBAMA from the stuff he does. We can’t convince him to get Israhell offa D;C’s teat long enough to end these stupid (non-)wars for them. Really, enough IS more than too much where Ziohell is concerned. Someone needs to finally help Palestine.
Apaprtheid was not good for S.Africa, but it’s fine by US as the lunatic-state keeps it up?? What??
#8 by Al on February 1, 2013 - 6:46 am
To all friends above,… fighting against Israel is not as easy as you think. You all condemned all countries because they didn’t fight back or in other words because they were chickens….
Very briefly I can tell you where or what the problem is… More than half of the countries in that area are US puppets and you should not expect anything from them. Other tiny group like Syria, Lebanon and Iran know that US is 100% behind all the mess and crimes that Israel has been committing and fighting against Israel means fight against US and its puppets. By the way, Israel has the best and the most modern weapons that US has made… so in this case, those countries you called “chickens” cannot afford to fight against Israel, US and other puppets…
Here as you see, Syrians are not just fighting against an independent group of terrorists inside their country but are fighting against a puppet group who receives its financial aides from Saudi Arabia, military aide from US, Jordan, Israel and other countries… By the way, Russian economy is not in a good shape and they cannot afford to start an expensive and unpredictable war…
#9 by Ingrid B on February 1, 2013 - 5:26 pm
Al, well said.. Russia prefers the wait and see approach.. It is foolish, and costly, to solve every little problem with aggression..
#10 by annebeck58 on February 1, 2013 - 5:35 pm
I agree Al. a hands off policy on IZ, by the USA is necessary before anyone else can really stand up for Syria or Iran. But, IZ has us where they want us. Our Congress and White-house are run by them. I think they have something on each and every “elected” person in office, besides having the money (tax-payer money) and power to make all of our decisions for us.
It really ticks me off.
Watching that idiot, Rand Paul, talk about the “holocaust”, and how the Egyptians are, :”anti-Semites”, and how Israhell is our best ally, really bothered me. But, he’s proof of what the US people have running our country. It’s not Americans.
#11 by David on February 1, 2013 - 9:47 pm
This might just be a blessing is disguise… It’ll hopefully bring a cease fire in Syria.
#12 by Blake on February 2, 2013 - 2:57 pm
Wish this usurping zio entity will just implode already.