Syria: IDF airstrikes target suspected Hezbollah positions in Quneitra province on July 24 /update 1

Event

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) helicopters carried out multiple airstrikes on Syrian military positions suspected of being used by Hezbollah militants late Friday, July 24, in the border region of Quneitra province and the Golan Heights. The operation was conducted in response to fighting in Golan Heights earlier in the day. As a result of the airstrikes, multiple observation posts and air defense systems were destroyed.

Previously on July 24, explosions were heard along Israel's border with Syria. Reports suggested that shrapnel from a nearby explosion damaged a building and a car in the town of Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights. No casualties were reported in the incident. The explosions come amid heightened tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, who maintain a presence on the Syrian Golan Heights, following an airstrike that killed a militant from the group on July 20.

Context

Hezbollah is a Shi'a militant group and political party based out of Lebanon. Israeli officials are concerned that as the fighting in Syria slows, Iran and Hezbollah will attempt to maintain a permanent presence along the Israeli border. Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in numerous armed conflicts over the past 30 years, including the month-long 2006 war between the two parties.

Advice

Those in the affected areas are advised to monitor the situation, anticipate a heightened security presence, and adhere to all instructions issued by the local authorities and their home governments.