Suspected Israeli missiles hit Syria for second day in a row

Syria reported more suspected Israeli strikes early Friday morning. It was the second Israeli attack in 24 hours. 

Missiles from the "Israeli enemy" hit unspecified targets in the Damascus countryside at 12:17 a.m. local time (5:17 p.m. ET Thursday), Syria's official SANA news agency reported. Syrian air defenses downed some of the missiles and the strike resulted in material damage. The attack came from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, the agency reported. 

The UK-based NGO Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the strikes targeted a weapons and ammunition depot southwest of Damascus used by the Syrian military and Iran-backed forces. The observatory claimed the Syrian military downed at least one of the missiles. 

A video purportedly showing the incident spread on social media. 

#BREAKING: Explosions in Damascus amid reports of airstrikes in #Syria. Initial video emerging below. AD activated. pic.twitter.com/XiDE69AYex

— Jason Brodsky (@JasonMBrodsky) March 30, 2023

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) later said that one of its officers, Milad Heidari, was killed in an Israeli attack outside of Damascus on Friday. Heidari was serving as a military advisor in Syria. The IRGC vowed revenge for his death, according to the affiliated Tasnim News Agency.

"The fake and criminal Zionist regime will undoubtedly receive the response for this crime," said the IRGC, according to Tasnim. 

Why it matters: The suspected Israeli strike was the second in about 24 hours. Early Thursday morning, Syria said two of its soldiers were injured in an Israeli missile strike near Damascus. Israel is suspected of carrying out regular attacks on Syrian and Iranian military targets in the country, though Israel rarely confirms this. 

The following is a list of the suspected Israeli strikes on Syria in 2023: 

• Jan. 2: A strike on the Damascus airport resulted in its closure and the death of two soldiers. 
• Feb. 18: A strike on a state security building in Damascus killed 15.
• March 7: The Aleppo airport was hit by airstrikes and temporarily rendered out of service. 
• March 12: A weapons depot was hit in central Syria, killing a Syrian officer and two pro-Iran fighters. 
• March 22: The area near the Aleppo airport was again hit by missiles, causing flights to be rerouted. 
• March 30: The two Syrian soldiers were injured outside of Damascus.

Know more: The US military and Iran-backed forces in northeast Syria both struck one another last week. On Thursday, the Pentagon said it had killed eight fighters affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps during the fighting.

Editor's note: this article was updated to include information from the IRGC.