[ad_1]
Tehran, Iran – The Iranian paramilitary Revolutionary Guard announced Monday that it had launched ballistic missiles on eastern Syria, targeting militants accused of recently attacking a military parade in Iran. This launch was the second such attack launched against Syria by the Islamic Republic of Iran for more than a year.
A prominent monitor of the Syrian war said the missiles hit a city held by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), one of the few pockets of land still held in Syria by ISIS.
Iran's state television and the official IRNA news agency said the missiles had "killed and injured" militants in Syria, without giving further details. The Syrian state media did not immediately recognize the strike.
The television broadcast footage of one of its reporters standing near the launch of one of the missiles, identifying the area as being in Kermanshah province, in the west of the country. ;Iran. According to a chart broadcast by state television, the missiles allegedly flew over central Iraq near the city of Tikrit before landing near the city of Boukamal, in the extreme southeast of Syria.
Boukamal is being held by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad. However, the city was targeted by Islamic State militants who lost most of the territory they held in Syria and Iraq.
Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told The Associated Press that Iranian missiles had struck the town of Hajin, north of Boukamal.
Strong explosions rocked the area in the early hours of Monday, echoing east of the Euphrates, he added. The Hajin and Islamic State militants' zone was attacked for weeks by Kurdish-led fighters backed by the United States.
A missile broadcast on Iran's state television carried the slogans "Death to America, Death to Israel, Death to Al Saud", in reference to the ruling family of Saudi Arabia. The missile also carried in Arabic the phrase "kill the friends of Satan", in reference to a verse from the Koran on the fight against the infidels.
"It's the roar of missiles belonging to the revolutionary guard of the Islamic revolution," said the state television reporter as the missiles were launched behind him. "In a few minutes, the world of arrogance – especially America, the Zionist regime and Al Saud – will hear the sound of repeated beatings of Iran".
The semi-official Fars news agency, presumed close to the Guard, has identified the six missiles used as variants Zolfaghar and Qiam, which respectively have a range of 465 miles and 500 miles.
Iran has also launched drone attacks on the site afterwards, state television reported.
Analyst Hadi Seyed Afghahi, close to the Iranian institutions and the Iranian Guard, said the missiles had been launched in coordination with the Syrian government.
A Syria-based official with the so-called "Axis of Resistance" led by Iran, including Iran, Syria, Lebanese Hezbollah activist and other groups fighting alongside the forces of Assad said that the missiles hit "the last pocket of Daesh" in Syria, using an Arabic term for ISIS.
The official spoke to the AP by texting Syria on condition of anonymity as he was not allowed to speak to the media.
The launch of the missile further adds to the confusion over the assault on a military parade in the Iranian city of Ahvaz on September 22, which left at least 24 dead and more than 60 wounded.
Iran first blamed the Arab separatists for the attack in which armed men disguised as soldiers opened fire on the crowd and officials watching the parade from an observation platform located in the area. southwestern city. The Arab separatists also immediately claimed responsibility for the attack and provided details of one of the attackers who finally turned out to be true.
ISIS also claimed responsibility for the assault, but initially made incorrect factual statements about it. Later, the Islamic State released images of several men that Iran eventually identified as attackers, although the men of these images never promised allegiance to the extremist group.
In announcing the attack, the Iranian media said the missiles targeted the two militants "takfiri" – a term often used by the Islamic State group – and the Ahvazi separatists. The separatists have never worked with ISIS in the past.
In his statement on Monday, the Guard said that, based on evidence from the Ahvaz attack, the "terrorists" of eastern Syria are supported and guided by the states United States, in accordance with the "satanic" plans of the White House, the Zionist regime – The Iranian Language for Israel – and a regional power, a reference to Saudi Arabia.
The statement adds that the "Iron Fist" of the Guard remains ready for any further action taken by the enemies of Iran.
This is the third time in the past two years that Iran has fired angrily its ballistic missiles.
Last year, Iran launched ballistic missiles on Syria after a bloody attack by the Islamic State against Tehran, targeting parliament and the mausoleum of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. In September, Iran launched missiles on Iraq aimed at a base of an Iranian Kurdish separatist group. Separatists say the strike killed at least 11 people and wounded 50.
