Syrian air defence intercepts missile attack on airport - state media
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian state media said a military airport near Homs city had come under missile attack which was repelled by its air defence systems on Thursday. 'One of our military airports in the central region was exposed to a hostile missile attack, and our air defence systems confronted the attack and prevented it from achieving its aim,' state news agency SANA said. SANA earlier reported sounds of explosions heard near the Dabaa airport, about 20 km (12 miles) southwest of the central Syrian city of Homs and 10 km (6 miles) from the Lebanese border
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian state media said a military airport near Homs city had come under missile attack which was repelled by its air defence systems on Thursday.
"One of our military airports in the central region was exposed to a hostile missile attack, and our air defence systems confronted the attack and prevented it from achieving its aim," state news agency SANA said.
SANA earlier reported sounds of explosions heard near the Dabaa airport, about 20 km (12 miles) southwest of the central Syrian city of Homs and 10 km (6 miles) from the Lebanese border.
Syrian state media did not comment on the origin of the missile attack.
Israel, which fears Iran and Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah are turning Syria into a new front against it, has struck targets in the country many times during the war, hitting the Syrian army, Hezbollah and what it has characterized as Iran-backed positions.
An Israeli military spokeswoman declined to comment.
Britain-based war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said troops belonging to Hezbollah and other militias allied to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are stationed in the Dabaa military airport. It had no information on casualties.
Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner, when asked about reports of the attack, said the U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State in Syria did not carry it out and the coalition does not target Syrian government positions.
(Reporting by Lisa Barrington in Beirut; Additional reporting by Dan Wiliams in Jerusalem and Idrees Ali in Washington; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
also read
France, Germany to agree to NATO role against Islamic State - sources | Reuters
By Robin Emmott and John Irish | BRUSSELS/PARIS BRUSSELS/PARIS France and Germany will agree to a U.S. plan for NATO to take a bigger role in the fight against Islamic militants at a meeting with President Donald Trump on Thursday, but insist the move is purely symbolic, four senior European diplomats said.The decision to allow the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to join the coalition against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq follows weeks of pressure on the two allies, who are wary of NATO confronting Russia in Syria and of alienating Arab countries who see NATO as pushing a pro-Western agenda."NATO as an institution will join the coalition," said one senior diplomat involved in the discussions. "The question is whether this just a symbolic gesture to the United States
China's Xi says navy should become world class | Reuters
BEIJING Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday called for greater efforts to make the country's navy a world class one, strong in operations on, below and above the surface, as it steps up its ability to project power far from its shores.China's navy has taken an increasingly prominent role in recent months, with a rising star admiral taking command, its first aircraft carrier sailing around self-ruled Taiwan and a new aircraft carrier launched last month.With President Donald Trump promising a US shipbuilding spree and unnerving Beijing with his unpredictable approach on hot button issues including Taiwan and the South and East China Seas, China is pushing to narrow the gap with the U.S. Navy.Inspecting navy headquarters, Xi said the navy should "aim for the top ranks in the world", the Defence Ministry said in a statement about his visit."Building a strong and modern navy is an important mark of a top ranking global military," the ministry paraphrased Xi as saying.