At least 15 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes on residential buildings in Damascus, Syrian state media reported on Thursday.
The strikes targeted the Mazzeh neighbourhood and the Qudssaya area in the Damascus countryside, causing widespread destruction and leaving 16 others injured. Syrian authorities have warned that the death toll could rise.
The Israeli military confirmed the air raids, stating that they were aimed at several buildings and command centres belonging to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), a Gaza-based militant group. The strikes are described by Israel as a significant blow to the group and its operatives.
A PIJ official told The Associated Press that the Mazzeh strike specifically targeted one of their offices, killing several members of the group. PIJ has been linked to the October 7 attacks on Israel, carried out in coordination with Hamas.
Israel has been targeting Iranian and Hezbollah-linked infrastructure in Syria for years, but recent weeks have seen an intensification of these operations. This strike is seen as the first significant targeting of PIJ in Syria in recent times.
The Mazzeh area, home to high-rise blocks, has historically housed leaders of Palestinian factions, including Hamas and PIJ, as well as members of Hezbollah and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
Residents who fled following recent strikes indicated that key figures from these groups were among those killed. Israel’s ongoing efforts to disrupt weapons supply lines to Hezbollah are also seen as part of its broader strategy in Syria.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese armed group says its fighters have launched rockets at the Yesud HaMaala, Manara and Dishon settlements, as well as the Dovev military barracks, in northern Israel, Al Jazeera reports.
Hezbollah also claimed to have carried out two separate air attacks on the Yaroun and Ein Yaqoub settlements in northern Israel with attack drones, saying the targets were hit accurately.
Separately, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused Israel of committing “war crimes” and “crimes against humanity” by forcibly displacing nearly 1.9 million Palestinians during its military offensive in Gaza, Anadolu reports.
In a report titled ‘Hopeless, Starving, and Besieged: Israel’s Forced Displacement of Palestinians in Gaza’, HRW detailed how Israeli attacks, evacuation orders, and destruction of infrastructure have created a humanitarian catastrophe.
“The intention of Israeli forces appears likely to ensure they remain permanently emptied and cleansed of Palestinians and, in their place, occupied and controlled by Israeli forces,” the report said.
In another development, the Knesset (Israeli parliament) will discuss a bill that bans the raising of the Palestinian flag in “state-funded or supported institutions”, Al Jazeera reports according to Israeli media.
The bill, to be presented to the parliament’s Ministerial Committee for Legislation, targets the flags of “enemy countries” and gives authorities permission to “disperse any gathering in which such flags are raised, and impose a prison sentence of up to one year, in addition to a fine of no less than NIS 10,000 [$2,674]”.
This would apply to state institutions such as universities, where protesters have at times used the Palestinian flag to protest against the conflict in Gaza.