Israel blamed for airbase strikes

RUSSIA and Syria have blamed Israel for a missile attack on a Syrian airbase that killed at least 14 people.

It followed a suspected chemical attack by Syrian forces in a besieged suburb of the capital Damascus that triggered international outrage.

Israeli F-15 fighter jets fired missiles at the T-4 airbase, near the city of Palmyra, from outside Syrian airspace in the early hours of Monday morning, Syria’s Sana news agency said. The strike killed at least 14 people including a number of Iranian military advisers.

An Israeli defence forces spokesman declined to comment on the claims, though Israel does not generally comment on its operations in Syria.

It was not clear if yesterday’s strike was a response to the poison gas attack that killed at least 40 people in Douma, near Damascus, on Sunday. The US and France denied involvement.

The death of Iranian citizens is likely to exacerbate tensions between Israel and Iran, who have come into increasingly direct confrontation in Syria.