Israel's chief of staff revealed Thursday that the military carried out an attack in "a third unnamed country" during the operation in Gaza against Islamic Jihad earlier this month.
"Ten days ago, in 55 hours of operational activity, Israel carried out the targeted killing of Islamic Jihad commander Tayseer Jabari with great precision," he said, referring to the targeted killing that kickstarted Operation Breaking Dawn, which in turn was sparked by the arrest of the Islamic Jihad chief in the West Bank, Bassam al-Saadi.
"While security forces were carrying out arrest raids in the West Bank, the military also performed strikes in a third country to maintain security stability along the rest of Israel's borders," Lieutenant-General Aviv Kochavi said.
The IDF chief likely referred to an attack in Syria, which is not uncommon. In past IDF operations in the Strip, the military always maintained its maneuverability along its northern border.
Earlier this week, Syria reported an Israeli missile strike near the port city of Tartus, which was aimed at several military sites of the Syrian regime that also housed Iran-backed militias.
During the strike, three soldiers were killed and three others were wounded, and the attack caused material damage.