Syria faces upsurge in strikes

Beirut: Soaring tensions triggered by the Israel-Hamas war are being felt in Syria, which has been targeted by air raids and other attacks launched from several countries.

On Saturday, Israel launched its second high-profile targeted assassination in the country in less than a month, killing the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' spy chief for Syria and three other Guards members.

Already unstable after years of civil war, Syria has seen attacks on US troops on its territory, Israel targeting its airports and senior Iranian figures, Iran striking suspected jihadists, as well attacks from Jordan and Turkey. Here are some questions and answers about the upsurge in raids on the country. Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, sporadic fire has targeted the Israel-annexed Golan Heights from Syrian territory.


According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor which relies on a network of sources in Syria, these attacks have been carried out by Syrian fighters working with Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah.

Like those targeting US troops, these attacks have not had a major impact. However, on January 8, Israel said it had killed a key figure from Palestinian militant group Hamas close to the Golan Heights who had been responsible for the attacks.