Israel Strikes Factory South of Homs

A copper factory south of the Syrian city of Homs was targeted by Israeli warplanes on Wednesday, Reuters reported. There were no details of casualties.

The Syrian army responded to the attack on the industrial town of Hisya by firing surface-to-air missiles at the Israeli aircraft.

The Israeli jets were not hit and returned safely to base, Reuters said, citing Israel’s Channel 10.

A senior Israeli minister on Thursday declined to comment on the incident but said that Israel will prevent any arms transfers to the Lebanese Hezbollah, Reuters reported.

“I can’t, of course, relate to reports about the Israel Defence Forces’ attack in Syria, but regardless, Israel’s position is clear: Smuggling arms to Hezbollah is a red line in our eyes,” intelligence minister Israel Katz told Army Radio.

“Israel has acted in the past and it will act in the future to prevent arms smuggling to Hezbollah according to intelligence information that we will have,” Katz added.

Israel claims it has struck arms convoys for the Syrian army and the Lebanese Hezbollah more than 100 times in recent years.

Russia Dispatches Long-Range Bombers to Syria

Six Russian long-range bombers struck the so-called Islamic State in areas near the border with Iraq on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported.

Citing a Russian defense ministry statement, the AP said that six Tu-22MZ bombers struck militant positions outside the ISIS-held town of Boukamal.

The airstrikes reportedly destroyed the militants’ command posts and ammunition depots.

The Russian long-range bombers took off from air bases in Russia to carry out Wednesday’s attack, the AP said.

Pro-government forces are currently pushing toward the town of Boukamal in an attempt to drive ISIS militants from their last major stronghold in the country.

Wednesday’s strike comes one day after Russia launched three Kalibr missiles targeting ISIS facilities in Deir Ezzor province.

Syrian Opposition Rejects Russian-Backed National Congress

The Syrian opposition on Wednesday criticized calls for Russian-sponsored political talks between the government and rival Syrian groups in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi, the AP reported.

Russia’s foreign ministry announced on Tuesday that 33 Syrian groups have been invited to the Congress of Syrian National Dialogue, a Russian-sponsored initiative that seeks to bring the Syrian government and its opponents together to discuss a political settlement and constitutional reforms for the country.

Alise Mofrej, a senior member of the opposition’s Higher Negotiations Committee, said on Wednesday that Russia’s proposal undermines the U.N.-mediated Geneva talks by creating “tactical” and “destructive” parallel tracks, the AP reported.

Ahmed Ramadan, another opposition member, said the Russian invite “bypasses” the U.N. and existing U.N. resolutions. “If Russia was serious about supporting the political process, it should pressure Assad’s regime to stop its crimes and to participate in serious and direct negotiations in Geneva,” Ramadan said.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Fateh Hassoun, who was part of the Syrian opposition’s delegation to Astana, described the proposal as “a Russian deception.”

“We don’t trust the Russians because they are part of the war and they are fighting on behalf of the regime on the ground,” he said.

The call for the national congress was the main outcome of the seventh round of peace talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana, which closed on Tuesday. The congress will be held in the Russian city of Sochi on November 18 – 10 days before talks in Geneva are scheduled to resume.

The 33 Syrian groups invited to the congress include opposition and Kurdish forces. This marks the first time that Kurdish groups have been invited to participate in peace talks for Syria.

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