
An alleged photo of one of the Israeli leaflets warning the Syrian army against cooperation with Hezbollah. (Photo credit: Twitter)
A correspondent belonging to Russian media outlet Sputnik quoted a security source as saying that the Israeli military carried out an attack on the southern Syrian governorate of Quneitra early Monday morning, with no casualties or material losses recorded as of yet.
“An Israeli attack with artillery and missiles took place from within the occupied Golan Heights in the countryside of Quneitra,” the security source said.
The attack targeted the Qors al-Nafl hill, west of the town of Hader in the northern Quneitra countryside, the source went on to say, adding that technical teams were currently “assessing the damage” in order to make an official announcement.
فيديو آخر للقصف الإسرائيلي بشمال محافظة القنيطرة من جهة أخرى #إسرائيل #سوريا https://t.co/715fBvQJM1 pic.twitter.com/jfD1W0b3bS
— Nour Abo Hasan (@nourabohsn) April 23, 2023
The strike targeted a Syrian army outpost, the state-affiliated Sham FM radio station reported.
Israeli media quoted an unnamed journalist as saying that the Israeli army dropped flyers in the area warning the Syrian military against cooperation with Hezbollah. The Israeli military does not normally acknowledge its strikes in Syria “under its general policy of ambiguity regarding its efforts against Hezbollah,” The Times of Israel reported.
Social media posts showed alleged pictures of the Israeli flyers, which read: “We are closely watching and aware of the ongoing intelligence cooperation with Hezbollah within the Syrian army’s positions in the region, including near the Israeli border. Your cooperation with Hezbollah has … brought you more harm than benefit. Cooperation with Hezbollah leads to harm!”
طائرات مسيرة إسرائيلية تلقي منشورات ورقية بالقرب من موقع المستهدف قرص النفل
ونشر أسماء ضباط سوريين موالين للحزب الله
اللواء سامر الدانا رئيس استخبارات السورية
وطارق ماهر قائد مقر إستخبارات حزب الله في #سوريا pic.twitter.com/sDpolOSrCo— Nour Abo Hasan (@nourabohsn) April 24, 2023
The flyers also showed unclear images of alleged Hezbollah and Syrian officers with one another.
Israel has dropped similar leaflets in the Quneitra area before. The Israeli military refused to comment on the matter.
Israel’s airstrikes on Syria are illegal under international law but frequently happen under the pretext of targeting Iranian and Hezbollah targets. More often than not, however, the strikes target the Syrian army.
This is the ninth Israeli attack against Syria since the devastating earthquake struck the country in February.
Israel has struck Quneitra several times in the past, including in 2014, when it gave air cover to Al-Qaeda militants fighting the Syrian army.
On 31 March, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said that Israel’s attacks against the country are indicative of their close level of coordination with extremist militants.