FROM EIR DAILY ALERT
Israel Conducted April 9 Missile Attack on Syria; Jihadis, Civilians Leave Douma Safely
April 9, 2018 (EIRNS)—Israel launched a missile attack on the Syrian T-4 Air Base in the early hours of Monday, April 9; as usual, Israel refused to confirm or deny its actions. The Russian Defense Ministry later charged that two Israeli F-15 warplanes had attacked a Syrian airbase in Homs province. First reports are that 14 people are dead, including 3 Iranian advisors. The Russians use the T-4 Air Base for their operations in Syria, although most of their activity there was reduced some months ago. This is the same airbase that Israel attacked in February, in which one of its planes was shot down.
Both the U.S. and France had earlier denied that they carried out the attack. Israel did not give any prior warning to Russia. According to NBC News and other media, a U.S. official who confirmed that the attack had been carried out by Israel, said that Israel had given prior notice of its intentions to the White House.
Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov today told reporters that Israel had not informed President Vladimir Putin ahead of the air strike, and declared that the fact that Russian military personnel were on the base was “a cause for concern for us.”
Five of eight missiles fired by the F-15s were intercepted by Syrian air defenses, the Defense Ministry said. “Three missiles reached the western part of the airfield. There are no Russian [military] advisors among those injured.” The Russian Defense and Foreign Ministries have requested that Israel provide explanations for its air strikes.
On Sunday evening, a major break in the situation in East Ghouta occurred—within hours after the claims of a chemical attack on Douma—when the Jaish al-Islam rebel group agreed to surrender Douma and evacuate their fighters to rebel-held northern Syria. This is reported by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) and other media. Thousands of rebels and their families have been moved out. Jaish al-Islam also agreed to give up its civilian prisoners, a key government demand.
