Syrian state media reported on Monday that Israeli airstrikes hit the consular section of the Iranian embassy in Damascus. The IRGC Quds said seven of its members were killed, including General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, head of the force in Lebanon and Syria, and Brigadier General Mohammed Hadi Haji Rahimi.
"We've made it very clear in private channels to Iran that we were not responsible for the strike that happened in Damascus," Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told Rudaw's Diyar Kurda during a press briefing on Tuesday.
"I will reiterate the US had no involvement in that strike, and we had no knowledge about it ahead of time," she added.
The Syrian defence ministry said in a statement that the attack was launched from the Golan Heights, highlighting that casualties were reported.
Iranian Ambassador to Damascus Hossein Akbari told reporters on Monday that the attack was carried out by F-35 fighter jets, adding that between five to seven people were killed in the strikes. "Iran's response to Israel will be harsh," he threatened.
Israel, which has carried out hundreds of airstrikes on regime-controlled areas of Syria throughout its nearly 13-year civil war, often claiming to strike pro-Iran militias such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah that supports the Syrian army, has not commented on either Sunday's or Monday's attack.
While it rarely comments on strikes attributed to it in Syria, Israel has repeatedly warned that it would not tolerate its arch-rival Iran gaining a foothold there.
