Israel rains missiles on Damascus, but most were intercepted: Syrian state media

Israel rained missiles on targets south of the Syrian capital on Monday night, but most of the missile were intercepted, says Syrian media. (AFP file photo) 
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Updated 07 June 2022
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Israel rains missiles on Damascus, but most were intercepted: Syrian state media

  • The losses were limited to material damage, state media quotes the Syrian military as saying

DAMASCUS: Syrian air defense intercepted Israeli missiles south of Damascus on Monday, with no casualties reported, a military source told Syria’s official news agency SANA.
“The Israeli enemy carried out an airstrike from the occupied Syrian Golan, targeting points south of Damascus,” with Syria’s air defense intercepting most of the missiles, SANA quoted the military source as saying.
“The losses were limited to material damage.”
An AFP correspondent in the capital Damascus heard loud noises in the evening.
Last month, Israeli surface-to-surface missiles killed at least three Syrian officers near Damascus, according to war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The Israeli strikes had targeted Iranian positions and weapon depots near Damascus, the monitor said.
Since civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, Israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes against its neighbor, targeting government troops as well as allied Iran-backed forces and fighters of Lebanon’s Shiite militant group Hezbollah.
While Israel rarely comments on individual strikes, it has acknowledged carrying out hundreds of them.
The Israeli military has defended them as necessary to prevent its arch-foe Iran from gaining a foothold on its doorstep.
The conflict in Syria has killed nearly half a million people and forced around half of the country’s pre-war population from their homes.
 

 


Syrian authorities bust smuggling ring, tighten border controls

Updated 6 sec ago
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Syrian authorities bust smuggling ring, tighten border controls

  • Smugglers' boat collides with rocks as it attempted to flee pursuing as Coast Guard vessels 
  • The boat was about to illegally transport passengers from the Syrian coast of Tartus coast to Cyprus

DAMASCUS: Syrian Coast Guard forces have arrested members of a human smuggling network operating in the western town of Tartus, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported Saturday.

Authorities pounced on the smugglers as they were about to transport passengers from the Tartus coast to Cyprus by illegal means, the state media said, citing a statement from the General Authority of Ports and Customs. 

"The operation resulted in the arrest of all those involved, including the organizers of the trip," said the report, adding that the smugglers' boat attempted to escape as Coast Guard vessels surrounded it, but collided with rocks. 

No details were made available on how many suspects were arrested and how many passengers were rescued. Criminal charges are being prepared against the arrested suspects, SANA said.

Headquarters of the Syrian General Authority of Ports and Customs in Damascus. (SANA photo) 

New restrictions on commercial transit

In a separate move to regulate trade and border security, the ports and customs authority has issued a new policy restricting truck access at land crossings and seaports.

Commercial trucks will now only be permitted entry for loading or unloading upon presentation of an original receipt from the Ministry of Transport’s freight office.

The transfer of cargo between Syrian and non-Syrian vehicles must now take place strictly within designated customs yards at border crossings.

Trucks passing through Syria in transit remain permitted, provided they are under a mandatory customs escort between entry and exit points.