The van that carried the men
8 Syrian air defense soldiers killed in blast
Mysterious blast on a road controlled and secured by the Assad regime claims the lives of 8 from the Syrian army's 150th division, who are tasked with operating the S-200 anti-aircraft system—the same system that intercepted an Israeli F-16 in February.
Eight members of the Syrian army's 150th division were killed in an explosion Sunday while driving in a van on the Damascus-al-Suwayda highway between the villages of al-Surah and Buraq, according to the Syrian pro-government news outlet Damascus Now.
The men were engineers and soldiers tasked with operating Syria's S-200 anti-aircraft system, which downed an Israeli F-16 in February.
Due to this, some Syrian pro-government officials have already pointed the finger at Israel.
The van that carried the men
Syrian opposition sources, though, said organized gangs of smugglers may be behind the attack. The Syrian army has already clashed with such gangs in the past.
The Damascus-al-Suwayda highway is controlled and heavily secured by the Assad regime.
Tensions between Israel and Iran are already at an all-time high, with both countries openly threatening military action against the other.
Israel has repeatedly attacked Iranian arms shipments to Hezbollah in recent years, with the most recent strike attributed to it claiming the lives of several military personnel.
