Click to see full-size image. Via Facebook.
Two large blasts rocked Banias on the Syrian coast early on March 18, with reports suggesting that strikes targeted the outskirts of the city.
Fighter jets were heard flying over Banias ahead of the blasts. Later, photos posted to social networks showed a large fire at an area in the outskirts of the city where a depot of the former Syrian Arab Army (SAA) is located. Local residents also reported an unusual chemical smell in the air after the blasts.
Click to see full-size image. Via Facebook.
Banias is located right in the center of the coast, around 23 kilometers to the south of Russia’s Khmeimim Air Base next to the city of Jableh and close to 30 kilometers to the north of the port of Tartus, where the Russian Navy maintains a base. The two bases were targeted with drones on several occasions in recent weeks, with no side claiming responsibility.
Several air defense and coastal artillery bases of the SAA are located around the city. Nearly all of them were struck by the Israeli military after the fall of the Assad regime last December. This led to speculations that the latest blasts were also caused by Israeli strikes.
Israel halted its strikes on Syria earlier this month following reports of indirect talks with the country’s Islamist-led Interim Government.
Syria’s Interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa met with United States President Donlad Trump in the Saudi capital, Riyah, last week. During the meeting, Trump announced that the U.S. will be ending sanctions against the war-torn country. He also called on Sahraa to make peace with Israel.
A recent report by Channel 12 said that Israel views Trump’s lifting of sanctions on Syria as favorably, albeit while maintaining a high level of caution.
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