AMMAN/JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Syrian air defenses shot down “hostile targets” on Thursday, state media said, in an area regional intelligence sources said contains Iran-backed assets, while Russian media said no Israeli jet had been downed as earlier reported. Syrian state media said air defenses shot down “hostile targets” flying over the town of Kiswah, south of the capital Damascus, and “were able to foil its goals” despite the “intensity of the aggression. State media quoted a military source but did not specify what the target was or where it came from. Furthermore, the report about a strike on an Israeli aircraft or an Israeli aerial target are bogus,” said the statement. The Sept. 17 downing by Syrian anti-aircraft fire, after Israeli jets attacked a suspected Iranian arms shipment to Syria, caused a diplomatic rift between Israel and Russia, and Moscow blamed Israel for the incident.

Source: Egypt Independent November 30, 2018 07:52 UTC