Missiles land near a Syrian airport

DAMASCUS — Two Israeli missiles landed near the international airport of Damascus after midnight on Tuesday, Syrian TV reported.

The TV report gave no further details, but activists on the ground who reported the sound of an explosion minutes ahead of the report said the Israeli missiles left a “medium” explosion.

The precise target fresh Israeli attack unknown.

Israel has repeatedly targeted military positions in Syria, including Damascus airport, on the pretext that it was targeting Iranian forces based in Syrian military sites.

In May, Israel targeted several Syrian military positions, of is the still claiming that it was targeting Iranian bases in Syria.

On Sunday, Israel struck positions of pro-government Shiite fighters near the Syrian-Iraqi border, killing more than 40 of them.

The Syrian government has accused Israel of supporting the “terrorist groups” in Syria, saying that attacks have been launched in their favors.

The recent Israeli strikes come as the Syrian army is on the first stage of a wide-scale offensive on several rebel-held areas in southern Syria, including in the Quneitra province near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

The Syrian government had charged that Israel supports the al-Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front in Quneitra.

The Israeli side has made it clear that they won’t tolerate any Iranian presence in Syria.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said in an interview aired last Wednesday by the Iranian al-Alam TV that the presence of Iran and Hezbollah in Syria is not for negotiation.

Assad said that the battle in Syria is long and ongoing and so is the tripartite alliance between Iran, Syria, and Hezbollah.

“Hezbollah is a key factor in this war, and the war is long and our need for these military forces will last for a long time,” Assad said.