Israeli air defenses shoot down Iranian drone over southern Syria

2026-03-10 - 14:13

Israeli air defenses shot down an Iranian drone over the village of Jleen in southern Syria on Tuesday, according to Syrian media. Al-Ikhbariya TV also reported that Iranian missiles were intercepted over the skies of Quneitra province in the country's south, marking the latest aerial engagements in the expanding regional conflict. Pattern of interceptions A similar incident was reported earlier this week when Israeli air defenses intercepted another Iranian missile over the countryside of Quneitra. On March 6, an Iranian drone was shot down and destroyed by Israeli air defenses over the town of Al-Hara in Daraa's countryside, according to the same source. Another drone was intercepted a day earlier in the city of Inkhil in the northern countryside of Daraa. The repeated interceptions highlight the ongoing air campaign and Iran's attempts to project power via unmanned systems. Regional context The interceptions come as the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran, now in its 11th day, continues to escalate. The joint attack launched Feb. 28 has killed more than 1,200 people, according to Iranian authorities, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Tehran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets, with Syria increasingly becoming an arena for these engagements. Expanding theater Syria, where Iranian forces and allied militias have maintained a presence throughout the country's civil war, has become an additional front in the broader conflict. Israel has conducted hundreds of airstrikes in Syria over the years targeting Iranian-linked facilities and weapons shipments, but the current scale of engagements reflects the wider regional war now underway.