STORY: Middle East escalation: on-site from Damascus
SHOOTING TIME: Oct. 2, 2024
DATELINE: Oct. 3, 2024
LENGTH: 00:01:25
LOCATION: Damascus
CATEGORY: MILITARY

SHOTLIST:
1. STANDUP (English): HUMMAM SHEIKH ALI, Xinhua reporter

STORYLINE:

STANDUP (English): HUMMAM SHEIKH ALI, Xinhua reporter
"In the Middle East today, the sound of gunfire is so deafening that the voice of reason can barely be heard, with little indication that peace will return to the region anytime soon. Last October, it started in Gaza; this October, it has spread to Lebanon. Fierce confrontations, shelling, assassinations have sent shockwaves throughout the region.

In Syria, the atmosphere is tense, with fires raging all around. Since September 24, over 200,000 Syrians and Lebanese have fled the Israeli military operation in Lebanon, seeking refuge in Syria. Many of the Syrian returnees were already refugees in Lebanon, but now they are fleeing again, this time from the war in their place of refuge.

But is Syria truly safe from the surrounding chaos, a turmoil it is already part of? Israel has continued targeting Syria amidst its operations in Lebanon. On Wednesday, an Israeli airstrike hit the Mazzeh Western Villas neighborhood of Damascus, striking a three-story building and killing at least three civilians while injuring three others, according to the Syrian Defense Ministry. Just a day earlier, on Tuesday, another Israeli air raid on the same area killed three civilians and wounded nine others. The neighborhood, home to several diplomatic missions and high-profile residences, has been repeatedly targeted, as it's believed to house commanders of Iranian and Palestinian factions."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Damascus.
(XHTV)