Israel Launches Missile Attack On Syria Again, Fire Hits Latakia Port Area

Jet tempur Israel. (Wikimedia Commons/Amit Agronov/IDF Spokesperson's Unit)

JAKARTA - A fire broke out in a container storage area of Syria's Latakia Port, following an Israeli missile attack, Syrian state media reported on Tuesday.

The attack, the second in December, damaged the facade of a hospital, several residential buildings and shops

The Israeli "aggression" caused great materialistic damage and assessing the outcome is still in progress," the Syrian Defense Ministry said in a statement, citing Reuters December 28.

Israel is known to carry out frequent attacks against what it describes as Iranian targets in Syria, where Tehran-backed forces including Lebanon's Hezbollah have been deployed over the past decade, to support President Bashar al-Assad in Syria's war.

Live footage broadcast by Syrian State TV showed fire and smoke in the container area.

"Firefighters were trying to put out the fire while ambulances arrived at the scene," a state TV reporter said.

Latakia, a Mediterranean port, is Syria's main commercial port. Russia, which has been Assad's most powerful ally during the war, operates an airbase in Hmeimim about 20 km (12 miles) from Latakia.

Citing The Jerusalem Post, as many as 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 in 2018. Russia expressed anger at Israel at the time, largely blaming it for the incident.

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.

#BREAKING: Major explosions and fire at Latakia port in Syria. Reports of Israeli cruise missiles hitting the area. Picture via @maarouf_lilian pic.twitter.com/nerwfYnhKD

— ELINT News (@ELINTNews) December 28, 2021