In a tense pre-dawn incident on Sunday, an anti-aircraft missile launched from Syria detonated over Israeli airspace, resulting in shrapnel falling in the southern city of Rahat. The Israeli Air Force (IAF) allegedly carried out strikes near the Syrian city of Homs, according to reports.

Syria’s state news agency, SANA, confirmed the Israeli strikes near Homs, stating that several sites were targeted, causing unspecified “material losses.” The Syrian air defenses responded to what they referred to as “Israeli aggression” on Homs, a claim frequently made by Syria in response to alleged Israeli attacks. However, military analysts often doubt the veracity of these assertions.

Fortunately, there were no reports of injuries, however, residents in central and southern Israel reported hearing a significant explosion during the strike.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) acknowledged the launch of an anti-aircraft missile from Syria towards Israel, indicating that the missile likely exploded mid-air. Footage captured in Rahat showed shrapnel believed to be from a Russian-made S-200 surface-to-air missile system, with the nose of the missile colliding with a building, causing minor damage, while the tail landed in an open field nearby. Firefighters and police forces swiftly responded to the scene.

Rahat, situated approximately 230 kilometers (142 miles) from Israel’s border with Syria and 415 kilometers (257 miles) from Homs, unexpectedly became the location where the missile debris descended.

The IDF stated that there were no specific instructions for civilians following the incident, and no sirens were activated in Israel when the Syrian missile breached Israeli airspace. While uncommon, previous instances of Syrian surface-to-air missiles fired at Israeli fighter jets have caused damage and triggered sirens as they fell back into Israeli airspace.

Israel has frequently accused the Syrian military of indiscriminately launching anti-aircraft missiles in response to Israeli strikes. Although Israel’s military generally refrains from commenting on specific operations in Syria, it has admitted to conducting numerous sorties over the past decade against Iran-backed groups attempting to establish a presence in the country. Israeli strikes have also targeted arms shipments believed to be destined for such groups, particularly Lebanon’s Hezbollah. Syrian air defense systems have also been the repeated targets of airstrikes attributed to Israel.

The most recent Israeli strike in Syria occurred on June 14, resulting in a soldier being seriously injured when IAF jets targeted a site near the capital, Damascus.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)