Four senior members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard have been killed in a suspected air strike on the Syrian capital Damascus.
Iran blamed Israel for the attack, which it said killed four military advisers as well as a number of Syrian forces.
Israel has not commented. For years it has carried out strikes on Iranian-linked targets in Syria. Such strikes have intensified since the Israel-Gaza war began following Hamas's 7 October attacks on Israel, reports BBC.
Senior figures among the Revolutionary Guard - a major military, political and economic force in Iran - have been present in Syria since the civil war began there in 2011, helping to support the regime of President Bashar al-Assad against widespread rebellion to his rule.
Saturday's attack took place in the Mazzeh neighbourhood, south-west Damascus, an area home to a military airport, as well as the UN headquarters in Damascus, embassies and restaurants.
Iran's semi-official Mehr news agency said the attacks killed the IRGC's Syria intelligence chief, his deputy, as well as two other Guard members.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based campaign group, said 10 people were killed in the strikes, including leaders of the Revolutionary Guard.
Iran's foreign ministry said the attacks were an "aggressive and provocative" act by Israel, urging international actors to condemn them.
bd-pratidin/GR
