ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - An Israeli airstrike targeted the Aleppo International Airport in the early hours of Tuesday, putting the airport out of commission, reported Syrian state media (SANA). The missile attack, "launched at around 2:07AM," led to material damage, causing the airport to shut down, noted SANA without reporting any casualties. Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes on regime-controlled areas of Syria throughout its 11-year civil war, often claiming to target Iran-affiliated militias, such as Lebanon's Hezbollah group which supports the Syrian army. At least 15 people were killed in an Israeli attack in February targeting “Iranian militia and Lebanese Hezbollah” near an Iranian cultural center outside Damascus, according to UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). Missile strikes on Damascus International Airport in January killed at least four people, including two Iranian militia members. Israel rarely comments on airstrikes attributed to it in Syria but it has repeatedly warned that it would not tolerate an increase in Iranian presence. Iran and Israel have been engaged in a shadow war consisting of long-running covert attacks on Iranian military and nuclear facilities, as well as sabotage and cyber-attacks. Iranian fighters are also frequently targeted in suspected Israeli strikes in Syria.
