The landing strip at the Aleppo airport in north-west Syria was damaged in three different points in an attack attributed to Israel on Tuesday - the second this week, satellite images show.
The images released by ImageSat – International ISI also show repairs done last week after another strike also believed to be from Israeli missiles.
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Satellite images of Aleppo airport runway damaged in strike
(Photo: mageSat International (ISI))
A source in the Syrian military told the country's news agency SANA that the strike on Tuesday evening, involved missiles fired from over the Mediterranean Sea.
3 View gallery
Satellite images of Aleppo airport runway damaged in strike
(Photo: ImageSatInternational -ISI)
Syria's Transportation Ministry said the Aleppo airport was once again closed after reopening for two days, when its runway was damaged.
Flights to Aleppo were directed to land at the Damascus airport.
The chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Ram Ben Barak told Ynet earlier that the strikes send a message to Syrian President Bashar al Assad.
"I will not speak about any specific attack, but the strike prevented certain flights from landing and Assad should take into account that if planes intended only to encourage terrorism are allowed to land in Syria, that country's international air traffic could suffer," Barak said.
"Israel's strategy in general, is to foil Iranian attempts to establish militias around us, which are well armed with precise weapons, and could deter us from acting against Iran or any other terror force in the region," he said.
"This has been Iran's long-years effort. Qasem Soleimani [Slain commander of the IRGC's Quds force] had been working towards that end and our goal was to disrupt it and at the same time indicate to the Syrians and to Assad that his decision to enable the plan, will be harmful to him," he said.
Tuesday's attack came after reports that Russia demanded Iran-backed militias to leave two strategic sites in Syria.
But since the Syrian leader allows Iran to continue to transport components for precise weapons and other equipment for the Lebanon-based Hezbollah group, the IDF targets the Syrian airports in strikes that cause damage but do not cause casualties and relates the message to Assad that he should inspect the shipments and demand that they stop, in the interest of his country and citizens.
According to international media reports, Israel is conducting a form of direct talks with Syria, to make clear to officials there that Jerusalem has no desire to attack Syrian civilian instillations and members of the Syrian military, but will not allow immunity for members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard's Corps, Shi'ite militias or Hezbollah members.
Messages to that effect are relayed to Damascus soon after strikes, in order to make sure there is no doubt who was behind them and why.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Syrian foreign ministry said Israeli raid on the Aleppo airport amount to a 'war crime'
"Israel must be held to account for it," the ministry said in a statement.