The official television channel Al-Ikhbariya and the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that Syrian air defenses intercepted "an Israeli aggression" around Damascus on Thursday. A Syrian military source stated, "The Israeli enemy carried out an air aggression with barrages of missiles from the southeast direction of Beirut, targeting some points around Damascus and the city of Homs." The Israeli army has not yet commented on these reports. Aircraft noise was heard in Beirut and its surroundings.
Lebanese caretaker Defense Minister Zeina Aker condemned the attack, stating that Israeli warplanes "brazenly violated Lebanese airspace at a low altitude, causing panic among citizens." She added that the attack violates UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the war between the Lebanese Hezbollah group and Israel in 2006, and called on the United Nations to prevent Israel from launching airstrikes on Syria through Lebanese airspace. Aker mentioned she filed a complaint with the international organization.
The Syrian statement noted, "Our air defense systems intercepted the aggression's missiles and shot down most of them; the results of the aggression are currently being verified." Meanwhile, Fadi Al-Hassan, Acting General Director of Lebanese Civil Aviation, stated that a Middle East Airlines flight coming from Abu Dhabi and another from Turkish Pegasus Airlines had to remain in Syrian airspace for about ten minutes during the airstrike before landing in Lebanon. He added in statements to the Lebanese channel Al-Jadid, "There is no truth to reports about halting air traffic at Beirut Airport. The two aircraft were over Syria and Cyprus and continued their routes normally; they were temporarily halted during the bombing. The control towers in Syria and Cyprus requested the two aircraft to change their routes due to the bombardment, allowing them to land normally at Beirut Airport."
