Israel Carried Out Deadly Strike in Damascus, Syrian State Media Says
New York TimesDec 23, 2022
Israel Strikes Building in Central Damascus, at Least Five Killed
story
Image copyright: The Times of Israel
The Facts
The Syrian military have said that an Israeli airstrike on Sunday killed at least four civilians and one soldier, and left multiple others injured in the central Damascus neighborhood of Kafr Sousa. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, however, has put the death toll as high as 15.
The strike hit an area that, according to unnamed intelligence sources, contains Iranian military installations. An Israeli military spokesperson declined to comment on the incident.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
Israel has been clear that it will not permit Iran to freely move weapons and fighters through Syria if such activities threaten Israeli security. It is therefore legitimate for Israel to target Iranian assets in any of the countries into which Iran has dug its tentacles. Tehran is using the tragic earthquake as a cover to move weapons into Syria and, unfortunately, Israel must defend itself by responding to this kind of militaristic aggression.
Establishment-critical narrative
This is just another example of Israel's unjustified aggression toward Syria and the resistance as a whole. While the West continually lectures the world on national sovereignty, it says nothing when Israel mercilessly kills innocent Syrians and Palestinians. Even as Syrians are being pulled from the rubble following a massive humanitarian disaster, Israel is continuing to bomb vulnerable neighborhoods — the country must be held accountable for all innocent lives lost in Damascus as a result of these strikes.
