Israel hits air defence base in Syria: Sources

Israel carried out an aerial strike targeting a main Syrian air defence base in southern Syria on Thursday (Dec 28) in the latest bombing campaign since the outbreak of war in Gaza on Oct 7, Syrian army and intelligence sources said.

Israel carried out an aerial strike targeting a main Syrian air defence base in southern Syria on Thursday (Dec 28) in the latest bombing campaign since the outbreak of war in Gaza on Oct 7, Syrian army and intelligence sources said.

Citing a Syrian military source, state media had earlier said missile strikes coming from the direction of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights had targeted several sites it did not identify.

"Our air defences confronted the (Israeli) aggressors' missiles and downed some of them with only material losses," a Syrian military source said.

Later, a Syrian army source was quoted on state media as saying Israel staged another round of strikes after midnight near the capital but gave no details.

Reuters could not independently verify the report. There was no immediate comment from Israel's military.

Since the Oct 7 attack by Hamas on Israeli civilians and soldiers, Israel has escalated its strikes on Iranian-backed militia targets in Syria and also struck Syrian army air defences and some Syrian forces.

The strikes are believed to have targeted a Syrian army air defence base and a radar station in the Tel al-Sahn area in the Sweida province in southwestern Syria, according to a Syrian military intelligence source and another regional security official familiar with the matter.