Israel strikes Syria after rocket fire on annexed Golan

TEL AVIV

Israeli warplanes struck a Syrian military position overnight in response to rocket fire on the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, the military said on Tuesday.

The cross-border fire came days after an air strike blamed on Israel destroyed the Iranian consulate in Damascus, killing senior military commanders and raising regional tensions.

The Israeli military said that "warplanes attacked Syrian army military infrastructure overnight in the Mahajjah area" — around 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the demilitarised zone separating the opposing forces.

The Israeli army said it identified a rocket launch from Syrian territory on Monday that caused no casualties. It said artillery struck the source of the fire.

Israel has raised its military readiness after last week's deadly strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus drew threats of retaliation from Tehran.

The April 1 strike killed seven Iranian Revolutionary Guards, two of them generals.

The strike came with regional tensions already running high as Israel battles Hamas in Gaza and exchanges near-daily fire with its Lebanese ally Hezbollah.

The Gaza war was sparked by an unprecedented Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7 that resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures.

Israel's retaliatory offensive against Hamas has killed at least 33,207 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.

Israel captured the Golan Heights in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised internationally.