Syrian FM says Israel 'playing with fire' after overnight strikes

Faisal al-Meqdad says Israel putting the regional military and security situations at risk of explosion, In letter to the UN security council minister says Aleppo airport runway put out of commission and navigation equipment destroyed; says Damascus airport also suffers infrastructure damage in strike

Reuters, Ynet|
Syria's foreign minister Faisal al-Meqdad, said on Thursday that Israel was "playing with fire" following Israeli strikes near Damascus and on Aleppo's international airport the previous evening.
On Wednesday, A missile attacks attributed to Israel, damaged the Aleppo airport and soon after a second attack also attributed to the Israeli military, was reported in the Damascus area.
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Syrian foreign minister Faisal al-Meqdad
Syrian foreign minister Faisal al-Meqdad
Syrian foreign minister Faisal al-Meqdad
(Photo: EPA)
The strikes resulted in material damage only, according to state news agency SANA, which said Syria's air defenses shot down a number of Israeli missiles around the capital.
In a letter to the UN security council, the minister confirmed that the airport runway was damaged and put out of commission and that navigation equipment was also destroyed.
In the letter, Syria said the Damascus airport was also hit causing damage to infrastructure there as well as the navigation systems.
The Syria civil Aviation Authority said earlier that the Aleppo airport is closed for maintenance work on its only runway but did not mention the strike.
There was no immediate comment from Israeli officials.
The UK based Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition group to the Damascus regime, said that three of the missiles his the military airfield near the Aleppo airport, causing explosions in the Iranian warehouses there.
The Russian forces in Aleppo knew of the attack in advance, the rights group said adding that they had raised their level of alert in the airport 30 minutes before the strike occurred.
In comments reported by SANA on Thursday, Syria's top diplomat said Israel was threatening regional security.
"Israel is playing with fire and is putting the regional military and security situations at risk of an explosion," the agency reported him as saying.
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פיצוצים בשמי חלב
פיצוצים בשמי חלב
Strike attributed to Israel on Aleppo Airport in Syria on Wednesday
"Syria will not remain silent regarding the repeated Israeli attacks and the Israelis will pay the price sooner or later."
Israel has staged numerous strikes in Syria in recent years, mainly targeting alleged weapons convoys or stores belonging to allied fighters from Iran.
In June, Syria blamed Israel for aerial attacks on its main international airport in Damascus that put the site out of commission for several weeks.
Israeli defense officials say the civilian airport has been used regularly by Iran to transport weapons and militias.
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