Syrian air defenses intercept Israeli missile attack on Latakia

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Israel fired missiles from the sea at several locations in the Syrian coastal city of Latakia on Monday, but they were intercepted by Syrian air defenses, Syrian state media said.

The attack on the western Syrian city, a stronghold of President Bashar al-Assad, lasted for an hour and a half, state TV reported.

The official SANA news agency said the Technical Industry Institution in the state-controlled city was hit.

"Air defenses have confronted enemy missiles coming from the sea in the direction of the Latakia city, and intercepted a number of them," SANA quoted a military source as saying.

State-run Ikhbariya TV said 10 people were injured in the attack. Eight were discharged shortly after being admitted to a nearby hospital.

TV footages showed areas that had been struck by the missile attack, and eyewitnesses said heavy smoke was seen on the entrance of Latakia as the sounds of air defenses reverberated across the city.

Syrian air defense batteries respond to what the state media said were Israeli missiles targeting Damascus international airport on September 15, 2018. /VCG Photo

Pro-government activists said the Russian-run Khmeimim air base in Latakia countryside took part in intercepting the missile attack on Latakia.

Meanwhile, the Syrian army said in a statement that the Israeli attack comes to lift the morale of the terrorists in the northwestern province of Idlib, the last major rebel stronghold in Syria, after the "decisive" victories achieved by the Syrian army on several fronts.

The army also warned of the "dangerous repercussions" of the attack, stressing the Syrian army's resolve to "squash terrorism and root it out of Syria."

Israel has repeatedly targeted Syrian military positions over the past few months.

On September 15, the Syrian air defenses intercepted a number of Israeli missiles that targeted the Damascus international airport, which was the latest in a string of Israeli attacks on Syrian positions.

Early in September, missiles targeted several positions in the provinces of Tartous and Hama.

Israel's air force has struck scores of targets it says were Iranian deployments or arms transfers to Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah movement in the war.

The Syrian government has repeatedly accused the US and Israel of supporting the terrorist groups in Syria to prolong the war.

(Cover: Screen grab from a video posted on social media purportedly showing Israeli attack on Latakia. /Photo via Twitter)

Source(s): Reuters ,Xinhua News Agency