At least a dozen fighters close to the Syrian regime were killed overnight Sunday to Monday in an Israeli airstrike against a factory in a community near Aleppo (north), according to a non-governmental organization.

“At least 12 pro-Iranian fighters,” both Syrian and foreign, “were killed in an Israeli airstrike against a position in the Hayyan community, north of Aleppo, which caused heavy explosions at a factory,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights explained.

According to Syrian state media citing sources in the security forces, the Israeli bombardment took place “around 00:20” (local and Greek time) and caused “a number of deaths and material damage”.

On May 29, Israel launched airstrikes in central Syria as well as the coastal town of Baniyas, killing a child and injuring ten civilians, according to Syrian state media.

The Israeli military has carried out hundreds of bombings in Syria, the vast majority of them from the air, since war broke out in that country in 2011, mostly targeting facilities or members of organizations close to Iran, including Iranian “advisers” and its units. Syrian army. They rarely comment publicly on the bombings they launch in Syria on a case-by-case basis, but they often declare that they will not allow Iran, the sworn enemy of the Jewish state, to further expand its presence and influence on Syrian territory.

Iran, a key ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, as well as its neighboring Lebanese faction Hezbollah, played a pivotal role in the war.

On April 13, Iran launched an unprecedented direct attack on Israel, launching more than 350 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles, most of which were shot down by Israel with the help of the US and other allies, including Britain. of France and Jordan. It was in retaliation — Tehran said it was “legitimate defense” — after the deadly bombing that flattened the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1. The Islamic Republic blamed him on Israel, which neither confirmed nor denied it.