Explosion filmed in Syria's Masyaf as Israel carries out air strikes

A large explosion was filmed by witnesses on a hillside in Masyaf, Syria on Sunday following a rare daytime air strike by the Israeli air force.

Syrian state news outlet Sana broadcast images of the blast, saying that three Syrian soldiers had been wounded.

The broadcaster showed images of what it said were Israeli missiles that had landed on nearby farmland.

Syria claimed several of the Israeli missiles had been shot down by air defences.

Joe Truzman, an analyst with the US Foundation for Defence of Democracies, posted footage of the air strike on Sunday morning.

There was no immediate comment from Israel, which has staged hundreds of strikes on targets in Syria over the years.

Israel rarely acknowledges or discusses such operations. It says it targets bases of Iran-allied militias, notably Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group. Hezbollah has fighters deployed in Syria and fighting on the side of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad’s government forces. Israel also says it targets arms shipments believed to be bound for the militias.

Analysts say Syria and Iran intend to open up a third front in a potential clash with Israel, over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which were captured by Israeli forces during the 1973 Middle East war.

Hezbollah is thought to have at least 100,000 rockets and missiles in southern Lebanon, while the Iran-backed Hamas is rebuilding its rocket arsenal following a devastating conflict with Israel in 2021.

While most of these are unguided rockets, Iran-backed groups are improving their arsenals with precision-guided weapons, which has led to increased Israeli bombing raids in Syria to destroy the weapons before they can be deployed or hidden.

Israel previously attacked Masyaf in May and August 2022 killing five people and wounding two. According to the Britain-based opposition war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the attacks targeted weapons depots belonging to Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard and Iran-backed militias.