IDF shells site in Syria where it says launches originated

Syria aimed “a number of launches” at Israel on Tuesday evening, prompting Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to respond with shelling aimed at the launch site, the military said in a statement.

“A number of launches from Syria aimed for Israel were identified a short while ago. Part of the launches crossed into Israeli territory and presumably fell in open areas,” the IDF said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“IDF soldiers are responding with artillery and mortar shells toward the origin of the launching in Syria,” the IDF said in a subsequent statement on X. 

The attack comes after rockets from Lebanon also targeted northern Israel on Tuesday, and Iran-backed Hezbollah on Tuesday claimed credit for firing a guided missile at an Israeli tank, according to a statement reported by Reuters. 

Syria’s reported move also follows an Axios report Monday that claimed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) warned Syria not to interfere in the Hamas-Israel war. 

The attacks from Syria and Lebanon come just three days after Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, launched the deadliest attack against Israel in its history, leaving more than 1,000 Israelis killed and an estimated 150 people taken hostage.

As of Tuesday, Israel said it had regained control of the border with Gaza. Israel also called jp more than 300,000 reservists in the country to bolster defenses as it readies what is expected to be a ground attack in Gaza. Israel has launched air strikes on Hamas targets in Gaza that have resulted in more than 900 deaths, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Israeli officials announced a siege on the Gaza Strip, effectively cutting off fuel, food, electricity and other supplies from entering.

President Biden and his administration have pledged support to Israel and condemned the Hamas attacks as terrorism. National security adviser Jake Sullivan on Tuesday compared Hamas’s brutality against Israelis to the tactics deployed by ISIS.