Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes on Syria, primarily targeting Iran-backed forces, Lebanese Hezbollah fighters, and Syrian army positions. On Tuesday, two Syrian civilians were killed in an Israeli airstrike, the fourth such attack on government-held areas in less than a week. The strike came from the direction of the occupied Syrian Golan and targeted some points in the vicinity of Damascus and the southern region. Air defence intercepted most of the missiles. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reported that an unknown number of Iran-backed fighters were also killed in the strike. Israel rarely comments on the strikes it carries out on Syria but has repeatedly said it will not allow Iran to extend its footprint in the war-torn country. The Syrian war broke out in 2011 and has resulted in over half a million deaths and forced around half of Syria’s pre-war population from their homes.