ISRAEL’S military killed two soldiers and wounded two others in an attack against a Syrian airport early today.

The Syrian army said the attack, which put the Damascus International Airport out of service for the second time in seven months, also caused material damage in a nearby area.

Syria’s Ministry of Transport said work to repair the damage began immediately and some flights resumed while work in other parts of the airport continued.

Israel has targeted airports and ports in government-held parts of Syria in an apparent attempt to prevent alleged arms shipments from Iran to militant groups backed by Tehran, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

There has been no comment from Israel on the attack.

On June 10, Israeli air strikes against Damascus International Airport caused significant damage to infrastructure and runways. It took two weeks to reopen the facility. 

In September, Israeli air raids hit the international airport of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria’s largest and once commercial centre, also putting it out of service for days.

In late 2021, Israeli warplanes fired missiles that struck the port of Latakia, hitting containers and igniting a huge fire.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of Syria in recent years, but rarely acknowledges or discusses such operations.

Israel has acknowledged, however, that it targets bases of Iran-allied militant groups, such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces.

The strikes on a country it is not at war with are a violation of international law.

Israel says an Iranian presence on its northern frontier is a red line that justifies its strikes on facilities and weapons inside Syria.