Israel strikes residential building near Damascus, Syrian state news agency says

An Israeli strike targeted a residential building in the Sayeda Zainab district south of the Syrian capital Damascus on Sunday, the Syrian state news agency said.

The attack resulted in a “number of deaths and injuries”, the state news agency added, without providing a detailed breakdown.

There was no immediate comment from Israel, which said last week that its air force had struck intelligence assets of the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah in the same area.

Sayeda Zainab, a stronghold of armed group Hezbollah and the site of a major Shi’ite shrine, has been the target in previous strikes.

Israel has ramped up strikes in Syria since the Oct. 7 attack by militant group Hamas on Israel in 2023 and particularly since the escalation of the Israel-Hezbollah conflict.

Syrian and Western intelligence sources say Israeli attacks in Syria have killed scores of Hezbollah and pro-Iranian militia fighters based around the eastern outskirts of Damascus and to the south of the city.