Israeli Airforce mission to destroy Iran’s presence in Syria dubbed as ‘Operation House of Cards’ – Update
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Updated: The European Union called reports about Iranian strikes against Israeli army posts from inside Syria “extremely worrying” and said Israel had the right to defend itself.
It also called on all regional actors to show restraint and avoid any escalation.
Britain supports Israel’s right to defend itself against Iranian aggression, Prime Minister Theresa May told her Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu in a phone call on Thursday. “The Prime Minister condemned the Iranian rocket attacks against Israeli forces, and said we strongly support Israel’s right to defend itself against Iranian aggression,” May’s office said in a statement.
Russia, generally friendly to Israel but fighting in Syria’s civil war on the same side as Iran, called on both to show restraint and resolve differences through diplomatic means.
Russia’s defence ministry said Syria had shot down more than half of the missiles fired by Israel, RIA news agency reported.
Earlier
The Times of Israel, reports that during two pre-dawn hours, Israeli F-15 and F-16 fighter jets evaded “dozens of missiles” and dropped “many dozens” of bombs on over 50 Iranian targets throughout Syria as the Israel air force carried out an extensive campaign, dubbed “Operation House of Cards,” to try and destroy Iran’s military presence in the country.
In light of that threat, the Israeli military remained on high alert on Thursday evening.
The mission — the largest air campaign carried out by Israel in Syria in over 40 years — was “very successful,” a senior air force officer said Thursday, but warned that Israel believes that Iranian forces in Syria are still in possession of surface-to-surface missiles that could again be fired at Israel.
According to the military, four of them were shot down by the Iron Dome missile defense system, the rest failed to clear the border.
This attack prompted extensive Israeli retaliatory raids, which targeted IRGC intelligence centers, weapons depots, storage facilities, observation posts, and logistics centers in Syria, as well as the rocket launcher that carried out the initial attack, the army said.
“We used many dozens of bombs. The weather conditions were limiting, the skies were full, which demanded coordination and synchronization, all of this while dozens of missiles were being fired at our planes — this was a complicated mission,” the air force officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity,
The Israel Defense Forces said that it suffered no casualties, either on the ground or in the air, and that no rockets fired from Syria made impact in Israeli territory.
The senior officer said that “dozens” of Syrians anti-aicraft missiles were fired at the Israeli fighter jets, but no harm was done.
In a YouTube statement Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran had “crossed a red line,” and that Israel’s action was appropriate.
“Whoever hits us will get hit seven times over. Whoever prepares themselves to attack us will be attacked first. That is what we have done and that is what we will continue doing,” Netanyahu said.
