Air Attack on Damascus || Breaking News, 21st of January, 2019

Syrian air defense systems repelled an air attack on Damascus from Israel — SANA reported on Monday. Most of the Israeli missiles were intercepted before they could reach their targets. The Israel Defense Forces stated that the missile attack on the Iranian forces in Syria was made in response to the attempted missile attack on the Golan Heights. They specified that the targets of the air attack were “The military facilities of the Al-Quds in Syria, armories near Damascus International Airport, an Iranian intelligence center and an Iranian training camp». On 20th of January it was reported that the Russian-made »Pantsir» and »Buk» AA missile systems, during the repelling of the Israeli air attack on the Damascus airport, intercepted seven missiles.

As it became known to the reporters of ANNA News — Turkey continues transferring their armored vehicles to the border with Syria. The transferring takes place with enhanced security measures, all according to the planned enhancement of the Turkish troops on the border with Syria. Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag announced that Ankara is holding consultations with Moscow and Washington on a possible operation in the Syrian region of Afrin against the armed forces of the Syrian Kurds. The Turkish media published a statement of the Turkish President in which he said that the Turkish army could launch an operation in the regions of Manbij and Afrin within a week.

The Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is considering the issue of signing of the peace treaty with Russia with a guarantee of transferring of a part of the southern Kuril Islands, ‘Shikotan’ and a group of small uninhabited islands ‘Habomai’, to the Japanese side — Kyodo news agency reports while citing their sources in the Japanese government. According to Kyodo — the plan assumes the possibility of the de-facto transferring of the Shikotan and the Habomai islands to Japan, TASS reports. At the same time, as the representatives of the administration of the Japanese prime minister specified, the transfer of two other islands, ‘Iturup’ and ‘Kunashir’, looks unrealistic at the moment. Such position of the Japanese Prime Minister can greatly complicate his upcoming negotiations with the Russian president Vladimir Putin.

The foreign ministers of 28 EU countries, during the first meeting of the EU Council in this year, will make a blacklist for the sanctions aimed at people, responsible — according to the EU — for the production and use of the chemical weapons, TASS reports. As expected, the restrictive measures will affect, in particular, four Russians, whom the EU calls “GRU officers”. They are being considered guilty of the assassination attempt on Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia. In addition, the foreign ministers intend to expand the sanctions against the Syrian authorities by adding more than 15 people and companies to the black list, and also discuss a plan to counter the disinformation in the EU and beyond, the main source of which Brussels sees Russia.

4 Syrian servicemen died on the night of 21st of January from Israeli air strikes. This was reported by the Russian National Defense Management Center. According to the center — another 6 servicemen were injured. “On 21st of January, 2019, the Israeli Air Forces performed 3 air strikes on the territory of Syria from western, south-western and southern directions” — the Russian military announced. According to them — the Syrian air defenses destroyed more than 30 Israeli cruise missiles and guided bombs. The Israeli air strike inflicted damage to the Damascus International Airport as well. According to the ‘Jerusalem Post’ — at least 11 people died as a result of the Israeli attacks on areas near the Syrian capital city of Damascus.