On Thursday, Israeli airstrikes hit Syria’s two international airports in Damascus and Aleppo, putting them both out of service, Syria’s SANA news agency has reported.
“The Israeli enemy carried out an air aggression on the two international airports of Damascus and Aleppo, taking them out of service, according to a military source,” the SANA report said.
“The source added that shelling the two airports that occurred simultaneously at 13:50 (1:50 pm local time) this afternoon caused material damage to the airstrips which resulted in being out of service,” the report added.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) also reported simultaneous Israeli airstrikes on the Damascus and Aleppo airports. So far, no casualties have been reported in the attack.
The airstrikes come amid Israel’s bombardment of Gaza in the wake of the Hamas attack on southern Israel. A day earlier, Israel reported shelling from Syria and said it hit launch sites in the country with artillery.
But Israeli airstrikes on Syria are common, and Thursday’s bombing is not necessarily related to recent escalations. The attack marked at least the 26th time Israeli warplanes bombed Syria this year.
Israel claims its bombing campaign in Syria is part of an operation against Iran and Hezbollah, but the airstrikes often kill Syrians and hit civilian infrastructure. Syria’s airports have become a common target of Israeli warplanes, including in the wake of a devastating earthquake that hit Turkey and northwest Syria in February. Israeli airstrikes on the Aleppo airport after the earthquake cut off aid deliveries into the city.
Source: AntiWar.
