Report: Explosion near Syrian capital kills Iranian colonel
- Country:
- Iran
An explosion in Syria has killed an official with Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, the force said on its website on Wednesday, blaming Israel for the killing.
The force identified the officer killed as Col. Davoud Jafari, who it said was working for the Guard.
The statement warned that Israel will answer for what it called the “crime.” Iran has been a main supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad during the country's 11-year civil war and has sent thousands of Iran-backed fighters from around the region to fight alongside his forces.
Dozens of Iranian forces have been killed in the war, though Tehran has long said it has only military advisory role in Syria.
Israeli officials have said in the past that they will work on preventing Iran's entrenchment in Syria, especially in the country's south near Syria's Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of Syria in recent years, but rarely acknowledges or discusses such 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 al-Assad's forces.
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
ALSO READ
UN Security Council should have condemned Iran embassy attack in Syria - Iran's UN mission
France tells French citizens not to travel to Iran, Lebanon, Israel, Palestinian Territories
Iran's Revolutionary Guard seizes a container ship near Strait of Hormuz amid tensions with West
Italy to recruit migrant workers in Lebanon, Ivory Coast and Ethiopia
Iran's Revolutionary Guard seizes a container ship with 17 Indian sailors near Strait of Hormuz amid tensions with Israel