Israel Launches Airstrike On Syrian Port Of Latakia: A Force Stronghold And Near Russian Air Base

Russian fighter jets at Khmeimim Air Base, Latakia, Syria. (Wikimedia Commons/Mil.ru/Russian Ministry of Defense)

JAKARTA - Syrian air defense systems responded to an alleged Israeli airstrike targeting the Latakia port area in northwestern Syria on Monday evening, according to Syria's state news agency SANA.

Photographs reported from the scene show what appears to be a fire blazing in the harbor, precisely in the middle of a shipping container due to a suspected airstrike.

In the video that reportedly shows fire, explosions can be heard in the background. Syrian state media later reported the fire had been put out.

A military source told SANA that Israeli aircraft fired several missiles from the Mediterranean direction towards a container yard at a commercial port in Latakia. A number of shipping containers caught fire in the airstrikes and there were no casualties, according to SANA, citing The Jerusalem Post December 7.

Whereas, the Latakia area is a stronghold for Russian troops in Syria, with the Russian Khmeimim Military Air Base located near Latakia.

In 2018, 14 Russian soldiers were killed when a Russian military plane was shot down by a Syrian air defense missile during an alleged Israeli airstrike near Latakia. Russia expressed anger at Israel at the time, largely blaming it for the incident.

قصف إسرائيلي غير مسبوق يستهدف ميناء #اللاذقية ويتسبب باندلاع حرائق كبيرة#أورينت #سوريا pic.twitter.com/GBHFYToBoP

— Orient أورينت (@OrientNews) December 7, 2021

Earlier this week, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad warned Israel would run the risk of airstrikes against Syria, saying such attacks "cannot go unpunished."

The last suspected Israeli airstrikes targeting sites in Syria were reported about two weeks ago, when at least four people were killed in an attack targeting Hezbollah-owned sites in the Homs Governorate, western Syria.

Meanwhile, a number of additional airstrikes blamed on Israel targeted Syria throughout November.

To note, over the past year the Russian air defense system battery has improved the capability and quality of its response to the increasing frequency of Israeli airstrikes, forcing the country to change its airstrike strategy.