Israeli Airstrike Hits Syria’s Aleppo Airport

The strike comes about a month after an earthquake devastated the city

An Israeli airstrike hit Syria’s Aleppo International Airport early Tuesday, damaging the runway and putting the airport out of service, Syria’s news agency SANA reported.

“At 2:07 a.m., the Israeli enemy carried out an air attack from the sea towards the international airport in Aleppo, which caused material damage to it, and as a result it was not operating,” a Syrian military source told SANA.

So far, there have been no reports of any casualties in the strike. Israel hasn’t commented on the incident and typically doesn’t take credit for individual airstrikes in Syria.

The strike comes about a month after a devastating earthquake hit northwest Syria and Turkey, which severely damaged Aleppo. BBC journalists traveled to the city after the earthquake and reported tens of thousands of people had lost their homes, hundreds had died, and hospitals were overflowing with patients.

Since the earthquake hit Syria, the country has been receiving more international aid, including deliveries that came through the Aleppo airport. Israel stepped up its airstrikes against Syria’s airports last year and claims it is targeting Iranian weapons shipments.

Israel frames its Syria airstrikes as operations against Iran, but they often kill Syrians and damage civilian infrastructure. The last known Israeli airstrike in Syria hit a residential building in Damascus on February 19, killing at least five people.

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.