Paris Soir - Israel missiles hit arms depot in Syria's Aleppo airport: monitor

NYSE - LSE

CMSC	0.29%	22.085	$
JRI	-0.15%	13.01	$
CMSD	0.31%	22.38	$
NGG	0.33%	82.59	$
BCC	5.02%	76.06	$
RIO	1.16%	90.54	$
RBGPF	0.52%	67.35	$
RELX	1.14%	32.44	$
BCE	0.28%	21.38	$
RYCEF	1.95%	19.46	$
VOD	11.14%	14.72	$
GSK	0.59%	52.78	$
AZN	-4.01%	171.61	$
BP	1.66%	39.2	$
BTI	-0.03%	60.02	$

Israel missiles hit arms depot in Syria's Aleppo airport: monitor

POLITICS 22.03.2023

Israel missiles hit arms depot in Syria's Aleppo airport: monitor / Photo: - - AFP/File

An Israeli missile strike destroyed a suspected arms depot used by Iran-backed militias at Syria's Aleppo airport Wednesday, a war monitor said, with authorities saying the raid put the airport out of service.

Text size:

It was the second such attack in a month on the airport in Syria's second city, which has been a major conduit for relief flights since a February 6 earthquake devastated swathes of northern Syria and neighbouring Turkey.

The pre-dawn strike targeting a compound and weapons depot at the airport "completely destroyed" the storage facility, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based group that relies on a network of sources on the ground in the war-torn country.

Since civil war erupted in Syria in 2011, Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes against its neighbour, primarily targeting positions of the Syrian army and its Iranian and Hezbollah allies.

Iran-backed militias have a heavy presence in the Aleppo region after providing key ground support to the army in its recapture of rebel-held districts of the city in 2016.

Following Wednesday's strike, the Syrian defence ministry reported "damage" at Aleppo airport, without mentioning any casualties.

"Around 3:55 am (0055 GMT), the Israeli enemy carried out an air attack... targeting Aleppo international airport, leading to some material damage," a ministry statement said.

"A number of missiles" were fired from the Mediterranean west of the coastal city of Latakia, it added.

The transport ministry said the strikes caused damage to the runway and to airport equipment, forcing all flights to be redirected to Damascus or to Latakia on the Mediterranean coast.

- Quake relief hub -

The Israeli army rarely comments on individual strikes against Syria, but has vowed repeatedly to keep up its air campaign to stop arch foe Iran consolidating its presence.

On Wednesday it said "we do not comment on reports in the foreign media", the Israeli military's standard response when questioned about such strikes.

However, in a separate statement Wednesday evening, it said on Twitter that one of its drones went down in Syria during a routine operation. The army added there was no risk of information leaking because of the incident.

Previous strikes blamed on Israel have also stopped flights using the airport following damage to the runway.

On March 7, three people were killed in an Israeli strike on the airport that brought to a halt air traffic, including relief flights. The airport reopened three days later.

By that time more than 80 aid flights had landed in Aleppo with relief supplies following the earthquake, according to the transport ministry.

Israel has attacked Aleppo and Damascus airports several times in recent years.

A strike on Aleppo airport in September put it out of service for several days. That attack targeted a warehouse used by Iran-backed militias, the Observatory said at the time.

Earlier this month, Israeli air strikes targeting a weapons depot in Syria killed an army officer and two pro-Iran fighters, the Observatory said.

Last month, an Israeli air strike killed 15 people in a Damascus district housing state security agencies.

H.Leroy--PS

Featured

Ukraine's Zelensky orders government reshuffle, new PM

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a major reshuffle of the government on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and the heads of some law enforcement agencies.

Iran, US trade more strikes as fighting escalates

Iran said Sunday it was closing the Strait of Hormuz and launched missiles and drones at Gulf neighbours after the US carried out a new round of strikes as their conflict escalated.

Noosha Aubel and Potsdam: The trust placed in her has been squandered

Noosha Aubel: a €33.4 million budget deficit in the state capital Potsdam, around €500,000 spent on external consultancy, revised austerity plans at the expense of children – and a shameful case involving a severely disabled toddler as part of a nursery scandal: Noosha Aubel inherited some of these crises, but the leadership deficit is now entirely her own. A 72.9 per cent share of the vote is not a mark of leadership; it is merely a vote of confidence. Noosha Aubel (50) received an exceptionally high level of this confidence in October 2025 – and has squandered it in a surprisingly short space of time. The hope for a fresh start has given way to bitter disillusionment, which is by no means limited to political opponents. After just 100 days, observers were already finding no clear direction whatsoever; in June 2026, media circles openly reported on unsettled supporters, unilateral actions and a lack of majorities. The yardstick is simple: is Potsdam functioning better? Are the finances in order, decisions properly prepared and the most vulnerable protected? So far, the answer is: no. Potsdam wanted a fresh start. It got a mayor who all too often confuses management jargon with leadership and is unable to get a grip on problems in the state capital. Added to this is a shameful scandal involving a toddler with multiple severe disabilities, for whom Aubel is personally responsible, and which raises questions about morality and decency. It is particularly shameful that media enquiries are not being answered by the head of the press office at Potsdam Town Hall, Jan Brunzlow – even though Noosha Aubel has demonstrably been contacted personally. Instead of answering the questions posed in a transparent and comprehensible manner, Brunzlow, according to the available documents, is pushing for a ‘personal conversation’, thereby apparently attempting to shift the communication into a non-public, informal setting. Should this course of action indeed contravene the applicable obligations to provide information under press law, a fundamental question arises: Is Noosha Aubel fit to hold the office of Lord Mayor of the state capital, Potsdam?

US-Iran strikes: latest developments

Iran announced it was again closing the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday and hit Gulf neighbours in retaliation for US strikes, further undermining efforts to salvage Middle East peace efforts.