Syrian Observatory: Top Commander among 4 Killed in Aleppo Strike

A view of Aleppo International Airport, in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, Syria February 14, 2023. (Reuters)
A view of Aleppo International Airport, in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, Syria February 14, 2023. (Reuters)
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Syrian Observatory: Top Commander among 4 Killed in Aleppo Strike

A view of Aleppo International Airport, in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, Syria February 14, 2023. (Reuters)
A view of Aleppo International Airport, in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, Syria February 14, 2023. (Reuters)

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights revealed that the Israeli strike on Aleppo on Wednesday destroyed a weapons cache used by Iranian militias in the vicinity of Aleppo International Airport.

A top Syrian commander was among four killed in the attack.

One of the dead was another Syrian, while the other two have not been identified.

The attack had taken the airport out of service. It will resume operations on Friday.

This is the second time Israel strikes the airport within a month.

The airport has been a key channel for the flow of aid into the country after the Feb. 6 earthquake hit Türkiye and Syria, killing over 50,000 people, including more than 6,000 in Syria.

Earlier this month, an Israeli airstrike put the airport out of service for several days and flights were rerouted to two other airports in war-torn Syria until the damage was fixed.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of Syria in recent years, including attacks on the Damascus and Aleppo airports, but rarely acknowledges or discusses the operations.

Israel has acknowledged, however, that it targets bases of Iran-allied militant groups, such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces.

Along with airports, Israel has also targeted seaports in government-held areas, an apparent attempt to prevent Iranian arms shipments to militant groups backed by Tehran, including Hezbollah.

Late on Wednesday, the Israeli military said a drone crashed in Syria while on a “routine operation.” It said no sensitive information had been lost and it was investigating the incident.



Israel Seals off the Occupied West Bank

Palestinians walk by the closed Deir Sharaf checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians walk by the closed Deir Sharaf checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP)
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Israel Seals off the Occupied West Bank

Palestinians walk by the closed Deir Sharaf checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians walk by the closed Deir Sharaf checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP)

Israel closed all checkpoints to the Israeli-occupied West Bank Friday as the country attacked Iran, a military official said Friday.

The move sealed off entry and exit to the territory, meaning that Palestinians could not leave without special coordination.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity in line with military recommendations.

Around 3 million Palestinians live in the West Bank under Israeli military rule.

With the world’s attention focused on Gaza, Israeli military operations in the West Bank have grown in size, frequency and intensity.

The crackdown has also left tens of thousands unemployed, as they can no longer work the mostly menial jobs in Israel that paid higher wages.

Israel launched a wave of strikes across Iran on Friday that targeted its nuclear program and military sites, killing at least two top military officers and raising the prospect of an all-out war between the two bitter adversaries. It appeared to be the most significant attack Iran has faced since its 1980s war with Iraq.

The strikes came amid simmering tensions over Iran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program and appeared certain to trigger a reprisal. In its first response, Iran fired more than 100 drones at Israel. Israel said the drones were being intercepted outside its airspace, and it was not immediately clear whether any got through.

Israeli leaders cast the attack as necessary to head off an imminent threat that Iran would build nuclear bombs, though it remains unclear how close the country is to achieving that.