Israeli Air Strikes Target Residential Neighborhood in Damascus, Killing at Least Five and Wounding 15

Early Sunday morning, Israeli air strikes targeted a residential neighborhood in the Syrian capital of Damascus, killing at least five people and wounding 15, according to Syrian state news. Citing a military source, state media said the strikes caused five deaths and 15 injuries among civilians, and damage to a number of residential buildings.

The rare, targeted strike damaged several buildings in the densely populated district close to Omayyad square in the heart of the capital, where multi-storey security buildings are located within residential areas. The news agency also reported that the strikes had damaged buildings connected to a medieval citadel in central Damascus and an applied arts institute housed there.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, reported that the strike had targeted a building in central Damascus’s Kafr Sousa neighbourhood near a large, heavily guarded security complex close to Iranian installations.

The Israeli military has not commented on the attack, which is the first of its kind since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011. The attack comes amid heightened tensions between Israel and Iran, which has been backing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the war.

The attack has been widely condemned by the international community, with the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calling for an immediate de-escalation of the situation. He urged all parties to exercise maximum restraint and refrain from any acts that could further destabilize the region.