IDF's massive May attack in Syria combined artillery and jets
Footage released almost 3 months after IDF retaliated to Iranian salvo on Golan Heights from Syria, in what was the largest Israeli strike in the country since 1974, shows cannons were also used and fired deep into Syrian territory; 'We have capabilities that enable the dispersal of shells to be as narrow as possible,' says officer.
The footage shows that the attacks, which were prompted by Iranian forces in Syria launching a rocket salvo on Israeli army bases in the Golan Heights after US President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 Iranian nuclear accord, included not only IAF fighter jets, but also cannon fire by the 282nd Goland Artillery Brigade.
A short time after 30 rockets were launched into Israel, the IDF returned fire, pummelling targets using a combination of heavy artillery and jets in Syria, the largest military campaign to have been launched on Syrian soil by Israel since the civil war broke out in 2011.
Over the years, the IDF has refrained from firing regular artillery fire at targets in Syria, fearing that shells could fall in the target area rather than directly on the targets themselves.
Using precision missiles such as the Tamuz guided missile or using tanks, the IDF struck multiple targets adjacent to the border.
During the night of the IDF’s retaliation, the military pounded brigade cannons dozens of kilometers deep inside Syrian territory.
The army also attacked anti-aircraft launchers, intelligence sites and Iranian logistics bases, along with military camps, weapons depots, observation posts and intelligence gathering bases parallel to the Golan Heights border.
“In my opinion, we carried out a proportional shooting in the incident, with rapid firing and closure of circles within minutes," said a senior officer in an interview with Ynet.
“We have capabilities that enable the dispersal of shells to be as narrow as possible. From the moment that the soldiers received the order, within minutes the first shell was fired after a swift calculation of the facts and a successful synergy between the center command of the forward fire and the artillery,” the officer said.
