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Israeli airstrikes seriously damage Syrian airport – report

Damage to the airport is so serious that it has been closed indefinitely.

By World Israel News Staff

Airstrikes carried out by the Israeli Air Force in the early hours of Tuesday morning severely damaged Aleppo International Airport, Syrian state media reported.

According to state media outlet SANA, large explosions were heard in the area around 2:00 a.m. No casualties were reported, although the damage to the airport is so serious that it has been closed indefinitely.

Photos and videos circulating on Arabic-language news networks and social media depict a large fire at the airport.

A senior Syrian military official told SANA that Israeli warplanes had infiltrated Syrian airspace from the Mediterranean coastal enclave of Lakatia.

While Israel officially will not confirm or deny that it carries out airstrikes in Syrian airspace, it’s widely believed that Jerusalem has executed hundreds of strikes in the country over the past decade. Israel is believed to have targeted Iranian and Hezbollah assets in the country, as well as weapons smuggling convoys.

Syria’s air space is under the de facto control of Russia, and Moscow has generally not interfered regarding Israeli airstrikes in the country.

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But in June 2022, Russia slammed Israel for attacking Damascus International Airport. Russian officials were reportedly incensed by the strike, summoning the Israeli ambassador to Russia for a dressing down.

“Serious concern was again expressed over the June 10 Israeli air force attack on the civilian airport of Damascus, which damaged the runway, navigation equipment and buildings, and disrupted international civilian air traffic,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement after that attack.

“The ambassador was told that the justification received from the Israeli side regarding the strike … was unconvincing and that Moscow expected additional clarification.”

The airstrike was believed to have been triggered by the fact that Iran was using the airport in order to smuggle weapons to its proxies in the region, including Lebanon-based terror group Hezbollah.