Israel’s intelligence minister, Yisrael Katz, strongly suggested that Israel – which has launched a number of raids against Hezbollah in Syria but usually stops short of claiming them – was behind the military action. “When we receive intelligence that points to the intention to transfer advanced weapons to Hezbollah, we will act. Syria’s state-run Sana news agency said Israel had hit a military installation that serves both military and civilian flights. Pro-Syrian government media and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights early on Thursday reported a large blast near the airport, while a resident of central Damascus, 15 miles (25km) away said it woke her from her sleep. Israel and Syria are technically at war, though the armistice line had remained largely quiet for decades until 2011 when the Syrian conflict began.

Source: The Guardian April 27, 2017 07:35 UTC