War monitor: Unidentified aircraft target Syrian regime

Unidentified aircraft struck oil-rich areas in eastern Syria held by government and Iran-aligned groups on Saturday, an opposition war monitor said.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said there were no casualties or material losses in the attack, the second within a week in the province of Deir az-Zour.

At least five explosions were heard, according to the monitor, in the Hawijah Kateh area and a nearby bridge north of Deir a-Zour city.

Syrian state media also reported the attack but gave no details. Deir az-Zour is a strategic province that borders Iraq and contains oil fields.

Iran-backed militia groups and regime forces control the area and have often been the target of Israeli war planes in previous strikes. Israel has staged hundreds of strikes on targets in Syria over the years but rarely acknowledges or discusses such operations.

Last week, an Israeli missile attack on the suburbs of the Syrian capital Damascus killed four soldiers and wounded three others. The Syrian Defense Ministry said the attack caused material damage. The Observatory said Iranian weapons depots had been targeted.