government and military long before this current conflict started on october 7th. the israelis for years would strike inside syria, hitting targets linked to the iran and never taking credit for them. it's part of the mysterious play they want across the region, trying to insure that their operations remain secret and also they want to keep the regime in tehran guessing. you can contrast that to the iranians who after the threats they made following the strike earlier this month in damascus, syria, that a killed one of hair thop generals -- their top generals, they basically projected what their plans were going to be, and the israelis doesn't want to make that same mistake. howard: they also wanted no casualties, but the media coverage in both countries has been muted. so do you think both sides are now looking for deescalation? >> reporter: absolutely. the israelis with this strike in the province just south of the crepe -- iranian capital of tehran gave leadership in iran