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Authenticated image taken from video obtained from the Shaam News Network. AP Photo

Israeli warplanes carry out Syrian airstrike

The attack targeted the delivery of Russian missiles with Israel worried repeatedly declaring it would intervene to stop Hezbollah receiving “game-changing” weapons.

ISRAELI WARPLANES ATTACKED a shipment of Russian missiles inside a Syrian government stronghold officials said yesterday in a development that threatened to add another volatile layer to regional tensions from the Syrian civil war.

The revelation came as the government of President Bashar al-Assad met a key deadline in an ambitious plan to eliminate Syria’s entire chemical weapons stockpile by mid-2014 and avoid international military action.

The announcement by a global chemical weapons watchdog that the country has completed the destruction of equipment used to produce the deadly agents highlights Assad’s willingness to cooperate, and puts more pressure on the divided and outgunned rebels to attend a planned peace conference.

An Obama administration official confirmed the Israeli airstrike overnight, but provided no details. Another security official said the attack occurred late on Wednesday in the Syrian port city of Latakia and that the target was Russian-made SA-125 missiles.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the attack. There was no immediate confirmation from Syria.

Since the civil war in Syria began in March 2011, Israel has carefully avoided taking sides, but has struck shipments of missiles inside Syria at least twice this year.

The Syrian military, overstretched by the civil war, has not retaliated, and it was not clear whether the embattled Syrian leader would choose to take action this time. Assad may decide to again let the Israeli attack slide, particularly when his army has the upper hand on the battlefield inside Syria.

Israel has repeatedly declared a series of red lines that could trigger Israeli military intervention, including the delivery of “game-changing” weapons to the Syrian-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group.

Israel has never officially confirmed taking action inside Syria to avoid embarrassing Assad and sparking a potential response. But foreign officials say it has done so several times when Israeli intelligence determined that sophisticated missiles were on the move.

In January, an Israeli airstrike in Syria destroyed a shipment of advanced anti-aircraft missiles bound for Hezbollah, according to U.S. officials. And in May, it was said to have acted again, taking out a shipment of Iranian-made Fateh-110 missiles at a Damascus airport.

Read: Syria has destroyed all of its chemical weapons equipment – watchdog >

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    Mute Judge_n_Jury
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    Dec 10th 2013, 4:45 PM

    Unattractive students creating a stronger right arm. Reminds me of my uni days.

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    Mute Joe Valentine
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    Dec 10th 2013, 5:13 PM

    Students will be literally pulling the stomach off themselves!

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    Mute Aunty Simmonite
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    Dec 10th 2013, 4:38 PM

    Is it any use for splitting logs?

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    Mute Leo Latorre
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    Dec 10th 2013, 6:28 PM

    Purchased by the US Army in 3… 2… 1…

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    Mute Pa Jama
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    Dec 10th 2013, 5:57 PM

    I love living in the future!

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    Mute Tom Godfrey
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    Dec 10th 2013, 4:39 PM

    Robot chicken

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    Mute i want to be frank !
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    Dec 10th 2013, 7:15 PM

    It Might make the arm stronger to a degree but trying to lift or pull something extremely heavy would rip the hand from the arm .

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    Mute Kevin Brady
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    Dec 10th 2013, 5:59 PM

    twould be great for masturbating so it twould. or in a scrap….”come here u ill bate ye”smack!!! then lift him up a throw him like ur super man. im getting one of santa claus

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    Mute Oisín Tarrant
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    Dec 10th 2013, 5:04 PM

    Dunno if I wanna put my arm into a robotic vice that costs 1/50th of what it normally does.

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    Mute Larry Bird
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    Dec 10th 2013, 9:58 PM

    Granpa’s cough medicine?

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    Mute alanobrien
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    Dec 10th 2013, 8:39 PM

    Go way

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