Reported Israeli Airstrikes Near Damascus Civilian Airport

An airstrike of probable Israeli origin launched two missiles at a civilian airport in Syria's capital, Damascus early on Friday morning, Lebanese TV station al-Mayadeen reported.

A source at the airport spoke to Prensa Latina, saying that nobody was hurt in the attacks, and little damage was caused.

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The explosions resulted in fires in several areas which were quickly extinguished, and the sound of the explosion could be heard around Damascus.

The Lebanese media has yet to announce further details of the attack. The National Guard for the Defense of the Homeland, which is a Syrian military ally, posted on facebook that “an area near the Damascus international airport was attacked by a hostile missile,” and posted photos of a fire.

Al-Masdar News reported that a Syrian military source said that the Syrian Air Force has shot down an Israeli drone near the Damascus province border shortly after the attack.

Israel however, has not confirmed the attack, with one Israeli military source saying that they “do not respond to such reports,” according to Reuters.

The attacks, if confirmed to be of Israeli origin would not be without precedent and would continue an escalation of Israeli military action against Syria, which fears a stronger role of Iran, Syria, and Hezbollah in the region now that the Assad government is winning the war against the Islamic State group and other terror organizations.

Most recently Israel shot down what it said was a Iranian-supplied Hezbollah reconnaissance drone flying around the Syrian border on Tuesday.

On September 7th the Syrian Army reported that Israeli airstrikes hit Syrian military positions in the Hama Governorate, causing extensive damage.

Following the attacks, the Syrian Armed Forces released a statement saying that the aggression is a “desperate attempt to raise the collapsed morale of the Islamic State group terrorists after the sweeping victories achieved by the Syrian Arab Army against terrorism at more than one front.”