Several killed as Israel launches air attacks on Syria's Damascus, Hama

Damascus [Syria], April 4: Israeli military aircraft have carried out attacks in Syria's capital, Damascus and in the central province of Hama, Israel's army and local media have said, in the latest string of strikes on the war-torn country.
The state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said the attacks on Wednesday targeted the vicinity of the scientific research centre in the Barzeh neighbourhood of the capital, as well as the airport in the Syrian city of Hama.The Israeli military, in a statement confirmed the attacks, saying it struck what it called "military capabilities" at the Syrian military bases in Hama city and Homs' T4 military airport, along with alleged military infrastructure sites in Damascus.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), based in the United Kingdom, reported that Israeli troops had already advanced into a nearby forested area before the attacks. Mosques in the region had called on residents to resist the Israeli operations.
Since the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad in December, Israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes in Syria and deployed troops to a United Nations-patrolled buffer zone on the occupied Golan Heights.
Syria's Foreign Ministry condemned the attacks as a "blatant violation" of international law and Syria's sovereignty. The foreign ministry said the attacks almost destroyed Hama airbase and injured dozens of people. A monitoring group reported that four defence ministry personnel were killed.
The Syrian foreign ministry said Wednesday night's air strikes targeted "five locations across the country within 30 minutes, resulting in the near-total destruction of Hama Military Airport and injuring dozens of civilians and military personnel".
SOHR said there were at least 18 strikes which targeted planes, rail tracks and towers at Hama airbase.
Israel also hit T4 airbase, which is near Palmyra, and a branch of the Scientific Studies and Research Centre (SSRC) in the Barzeh neighbourhood of Damascus, it added.
"This unjustified escalation is a deliberate attempt to destabilise Syria and exacerbate the suffering of its people," the Syrian foreign ministry said.
It called the strikes "a blatant violation of international law and Syrian sovereignty", and urged the international community to "exert pressure on Israel to cease its aggression".
But Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said the latest attacks in Syria are a clear warning that Israel will resolutely prevent any threat to its security interests. The military remains stationed in strategic areas to protect Israeli towns from threats, he said.
Observers fear that the Israeli attacks in Syria could lead to further escalation.
Even while Al Assad was in power, Israel also routinely attacked Syria, bombing what it claimed were Iranian and Hezbollah targets.
In the days after Al Assad's removal on December 8, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rightsreported Israeli strikes targeting the research centre in Barzeh. Israel has claimed the centre was used to develop guided missiles and chemical weapons.
Source: Qatar Tribune