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Syria says Israeli strike on Aleppo airport disrupts earthquake aid delivery

Foreign donors have flown aid into Aleppo airport since the earthquake last month (File pic)
Foreign donors have flown aid into Aleppo airport since the earthquake last month (File pic)

An Israeli air strike knocked Aleppo airport out of service this morning and forced the Syrian authorities to reroute flights carrying aid for those affected by last month's earthquake, Syrian state media reported.

The Israeli military declined to comment.

Israel has for years been carrying out attacks against what it has described as Iran-linked targets in Syria

Tehran's influence has grown in Syria since it began supporting President Bashar al-Assad in the civil war that began in 2011.

In the second attack on Aleppo airport in six months, Syrian air defences intercepted missiles launched from the Mediterranean, west of the coastal city of Latakia, at 2.07am (11.07 pm Irish time), state news agency SANA reported, citing a military source.

The attack caused "material damage" to the airport, SANA cited the source as saying, without mentioning any casualties.

In a statement reported by state media, the transport ministry said humanitarian aid flights would be rerouted to Damascus and Latakia after the "Israeli aggression".

Foreign donors including the United Arab Emirates, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Algeria have flown aid into Aleppo airport since the 6 February earthquake, Syrian state media has reported.

The earthquake killed 1,414 deaths in government-held parts of the country, the government has said.

More than 4,500 were reported killed by the earthquake in parts of Syria under rebel control in the northwest, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has said.

Aleppo has been left in ruins by the war and the recent earthquake

Israel has previously said its air strikes in Syria have slowed down Iran's entrenchment in the country, where Tehran has supported pro-Assad groups including Lebanon's Hezbollah.

The attack overnight was Israel's third air strike in Syria this year, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Last year, Israel carried out more than 30 air strikes in Syria, the observatory said.