Syria blames Israel for bombing key military airport near Damascus

Multiple heavy blasts hit a key military airport near capital Damascus just after midnight Thursday (12 January). Syria's state television has carried a report, saying rockets fired from northern Israel struck its military airbase.

Warning serious consequences, the Syrian forces loyal to the embattled President Bashar al-Assad said it was a "flagrant" attack at the al-Mazzeh airport. Though it is yet to be determined whether there are casualties, ambulances were seen rushing to the spot where the attack caused a fire.

At least eight missiles had bombed the airbase, located southwest of Damascus. The airport is only 5kms from Assad's residence in the capital.

Images on social media show large fire engulfing the military compound and smoke emerging from the facility.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) does not usually comment on its military operations, but is known to have targeted several installations belonging to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah in the past.

"Syrian army command and armed forces warn Israel of the repercussions of the flagrant attack and stresses its continued fight against [this] terrorism and amputate the arms of the perpetrators," said the Syrian army in a statement.

Local reports also suggested that the attack was carried out by Israeli air strikes though it remains unclear. The airport is a strategically important base for Syria's elite Republican Guards, and was used as a vital base to launch attacks on rebel-held areas surrounding Damascus.

This is also not the first time Syria is accusing Israel of entering in its territory. Israel and Syria are officially in a state of war ever since the former occupied the Golan Heights in 1967.