An Israeli Air Force F-35 fighter jet flies during an aerial demonstration at a graduation ceremony for Israeli airforce pilots at the Hatzerim air base in southern Israel December 29, 2016.. (photo credit: REUTERS/AMIR COHEN)
On May 7, several airstrikes targeted the eastern outskirts of the eastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor which is held by Syrian government forces.
The Syrian Arab News Agency said that an “aerial aggression” targeted the island of Hawijah Kate without elaborating. The state-run agency didn’t report any casualties.
According to unverified reports, the airstrikes hit positions of Iranian-backed forces. The main target of the airstrikes may have been a bridge on the Euphrates River that was recently built by Iranian-backed forces. The said bridge links seven government-held towns on the eastern bank of the Euphrates, Hatla, Murat, Mazloum, Khasham, Tabiya, Salhiya, and Husayniyah, with Deir Ezzor city.
The airstrikes were likely carried out by the US-led coalition or Israel who targeted Iranian-backed forces in Deir Ezzor on several occasions in the last few years.
Following the airstrikes, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported an attack with a single rocket on the Conoco gas factory to the east of Deir Ezzor city. The factory is occupied by the US-led coalition. The London-based monitoring group said that the rocket was launched by Iranian-backed forces.
The US-led coalition may have carried out the airstrikes in response to the April 7 sabotage attack. Four American service members were wounded as a result of the attack which took place inside a coalition base in al-Omar oil fields in the southeastern countryside of Deir Ezzor. Iranian-backed forces were unofficially blamed for the attack.
It’s also possible that the airstrikes were carried out by Israel which recently ramped up its attacks on Iranian-backed forces in Syria. During April, three Israeli attacks targeted the central and western regions of Syria.
If this is true, let’s hope they retaliate directly at israel