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Syria conflict: Israel 'carries out Latakia air strike' | Syria conflict: Israel 'carries out Latakia air strike' |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Israeli aircraft have carried out a strike near the Syrian coastal city of Latakia, a US official says. | Israeli aircraft have carried out a strike near the Syrian coastal city of Latakia, a US official says. |
The official said the strike targeted Russian-made missiles intended for the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. | The official said the strike targeted Russian-made missiles intended for the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. |
Latakia is a stronghold of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, an important port city where the Alawite community to which he belongs is concentrated. | Latakia is a stronghold of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, an important port city where the Alawite community to which he belongs is concentrated. |
Israel is widely reported to have carried out at least three air strikes in Syria so far this year. | Israel is widely reported to have carried out at least three air strikes in Syria so far this year. |
Reports of the strike came as the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said all Syria's declared equipment for making chemical weapons had been destroyed, one day before a deadline. | |
Action by the OPCW was agreed following allegations, denied by the Syrian government, that its forces had used chemical weapons in civilian areas - and after the US and France threatened military intervention. | |
Delicate moment | |
A US official said the Israeli strike took place overnight from Wednesday into Thursday. | |
Reports circulated on Thursday of explosions near Latakia, but the cause was not clear. | Reports circulated on Thursday of explosions near Latakia, but the cause was not clear. |
"Several explosions were heard in an air defence base in the Snubar Jableh area," said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based activist network. | "Several explosions were heard in an air defence base in the Snubar Jableh area," said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based activist network. |
Neither Israel nor Syria have commented on the reports. | Neither Israel nor Syria have commented on the reports. |
One unnamed US official told the Associated Press that the missiles targeted by Israel were Russian-made SA-125s. | |
Israel has repeatedly said it would act if it felt Syrian weapons, conventional or chemical, were being transferred to militant groups in the region, especially Hezbollah. | Israel has repeatedly said it would act if it felt Syrian weapons, conventional or chemical, were being transferred to militant groups in the region, especially Hezbollah. |
The BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut says the reports come at a delicate moment, with the Russians - who apparently made the weapons that Israel is said to have targeted - working closely with the US to get a peace conference on Syria off the ground. | The BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut says the reports come at a delicate moment, with the Russians - who apparently made the weapons that Israel is said to have targeted - working closely with the US to get a peace conference on Syria off the ground. |
Russia has been a key backer of President Assad's, continuing to supply his government with weapons during the conflict in Syria. | Russia has been a key backer of President Assad's, continuing to supply his government with weapons during the conflict in Syria. |
Mr Assad had promised to respond to any future strikes by Israel. | Mr Assad had promised to respond to any future strikes by Israel. |
'Constructive partner' | |
On ThursdayI, the OPCW said in a statement that its teams had inspected 21 of the 23 chemical weapons sites in Syria. | |
It said two sites were too dangerous to visit, but equipment from those sites had already been moved to places where it could be inspected. | |
Syria's Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad told the BBC that his government was co-operating, and was making a contribution to freeing the Middle East of weapons of mass destruction. | |
"I hope those who have always thought of us negatively will change their minds and understand that Syria was, is, and will be always a constructive partner," Mr Mekdad said. | |
Syria's next deadline is mid-November, by which time the OPCW and the Syrians must agree a detailed plan to destroy the country's chemical weapons stockpile. | |
Syria has until mid-2014 to destroy the chemical weapons themselves. | |
Syria's arsenal is believed to include more than 1,000 tonnes of the nerve gas sarin, the blister agent sulphur mustard and other banned chemicals, stored at dozens of sites. | |
The uprising against Mr Assad began in 2011. More than 100,000 people have been killed and more than two million people have fled the country, according to the UN. | The uprising against Mr Assad began in 2011. More than 100,000 people have been killed and more than two million people have fled the country, according to the UN. |