Daily Times

Damascus:  Israel attacks Damascus airport five soldiers killed Syria says. Israel carried out an airstrike on Syria’s Damascus International airport and other positions south of the capital. The strike killed five soldiers and caused material damage, the ministry of defense said early on Saturday.

Syrian air defenses intercepted the attack and managed to down most of the missiles, a ministry statement said.

There was no immediate confirmation whether the strike had affected airport operations.

Moreover, Israel’s military said it did not comment on foreign reports.

Israel has intensified strikes on Syrian airports to disrupt Iran’s increasing use of aerial supply lines to deliver arms to allies in Syria and Lebanon including Hezbollah, regional diplomatic and intelligence sources told Reuters.

An Israeli missile strike in the countryside around the capital Damascus and south of coastal Tartous province killed three soldiers last month.

In June, Israeli air raids put Damascus airport out of service for nearly two weeks.

In the past month, Israeli attacks have twice targeted Aleppo airport.

While Israel rarely comments on individual attacks, it has acknowledged carrying out hundreds in Syria. It has said are necessary to prevent regional rival Iran from gaining a foothold on its doorstep.

Tehran has adopted air transport as a more reliable means of ferrying military equipment to its forces and allied fighters in Syria, following disruptions to ground transfers.

Furthermore, hundreds of thousands of people have died and millions have been made homeless. Since protests against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in 2011 developed into a civil war. The war drew in foreign powers and left Syria carved into zones of control.