Israeli missile strikes put Damascus airport out of service, two killed

Damascus [Syria], January 2 (ANI): The Israeli army carried out a missile strike on Monday targeting Damascus International airport that put it out of service, killed two soldiers and left two others injured, reported ABC News citing Syria’s state news agency SANA.

At around 2:00 am (23:00 GMT), Israel carried out an air attack with “barrages of missiles, targeting Damascus International Airport and its surroundings”, the military source told SANA. The attack caused “the death of two soldiers… putting Damascus international airport out of service”.

Israel has targeted airports and ports in government-held parts of Syria in an apparent attempt to prevent arms shipments from Iran to militant groups backed by Tehran, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah, reported ABC News.

An opposition war monitor reported that the Israeli strikes hit the airport and an arms depot close to the facility south of Damascus.

Meanwhile, according to ABC News, Israel has not made any comments regarding the strike at Damascus International airport.

Notably, the attack, the first this year, also caused material damage in the nearby area, the army said while refraining from divulging details.

It was the second time the Damascus International Airport was put out of service in less than a year.

On June 10, Israeli airstrikes that struck Damascus International Airport caused significant damage to infrastructure and runways.

It was reopened two weeks later after repairs.

In September, Israeli airstrikes hit the international airport of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria’s largest and once commercial centre, also putting it out of service for days.

In late 2021, Israeli warplanes fired missiles that struck the port of Latakia hitting containers and triggering a massive fire.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of Syria in recent years, but rarely acknowledges or discusses such operations, reported ABC News.

Israel has acknowledged, however, that it targets bases of Iran-allied militant groups, such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces.

Thousands of Iran-backed fighters have joined Syria’s 11-year civil war and helped tip the balance of power in Assad’s favour.

According to ABC News, Israel said, an Iranian presence on its northern frontier is a red line that justifies its strikes on facilities and weapons inside Syria.