Israel strikes Syria in response to anti-aircraft fire

The Israeli military said it attacked missile batteries in Syria on Wednesday after an anti-aircraft missile was fired towards Israel during what Syrian state media reported was an earlier strike around Damascus.

"Following the anti-aircraft missile launch earlier tonight, the Israel Defense Forces attacked surface-to-air missile batteries and radar that fired at Israeli air force planes," the military said on Twitter.

Syrian state media outlet SANA reported that Syrian air defenses intercepted hostile targets in skies over Damascus.

One Syrian soldier was killed and five were wounded in the attacks, Syrian state TV reported, citing a military source.

A military spokesperson declined to comment on the Syrian report of an initial Israeli attack near the Syrian capital.

But the military said it carried out a counter-strike in Syria in response to the launching of the anti-aircraft missile.

It said the missile triggered sirens in parts of Israel and the occupied West Bank and exploded in midair.

Israel has mounted frequent attacks against what it says are Iranian targets in Syria, where Tehran-backed forces led by Lebanon's Hezbollah have supported President Bashar al-Assad over the past decade in Syria's civil war.

(Reuters)