Syria says Israeli missiles fired at Damascus only hit airport warehouse

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Syrian state news reported early Saturday morning that the nation's air defenses shot down most of a group of Israeli missiles that were fired toward Damascus the night before, citing military sources.

According to the source, defense systems intercepted missiles that were fired from “Israeli military planes” at around 11:00 pm (2100 GMT).

“Only a ministry of transport warehouse at Damascus international airport was hit,” wrote the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), as quoted by AFP.

An additional source, from the ministry, said that the airport was running normally following the incident. 

Government-run media also broadcasted footage of what it claimed was Syrian air defenses intercepting missiles in the sky at night. In one of the videos, the sound of explosions can be heard.

Over the past few years, Israel has carried out similar attacks in Syria, saying they are targeting Iranian military bases and advanced arms deliveries to Hezbollah fighters who had been supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad since 2011.

The last Israeli attack reported by Syrian state media was on Dec. 25 in which three Syrian soldiers were listed as injured.

In September, a senior Israeli official told Reuters that his country had carried out over 200 attacks against Iranian targets inside Syria in the past two years. 

Editing by John J. Catherine