Syrian air marshals shot down Israeli missiles near the capital Damascus on Tuesday, local state media reported, while Israel said it was protecting itself from anti-aircraft fire.

The official Syrian news agency SANA said air defences “intercepted hostile missiles launched by the Israeli warplanes” from over Lebanese territories, citing a military source.

It added that the majority of them were downed before reaching their targets near the capital Damascus.

According to AFP, three soldiers were injured and an ammunition depot damaged.

Israel has previously carried out several bombings in Syria against what it says are Iranian military targets and advanced arms deliveries to Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Lebanese group, both enemies of the Jewish state.

Many of them have been in the area south of Damascus. An Israeli military spokeswoman declined to comment on reports of a strike in Syria when contacted by AFP.

Meanwhile, Reuters quoted Russia’s Ministry of Defence as saying yesterday that Israeli missile strikes against Syria had directly threatened two civilian flights. Russia had previously accused Israel of downing its fighter jet in September 2018.

The ministry, which did not specify which flights had been threatened, added that Syrian air defences had destroyed 14 of 16 Israeli missiles launched against unspecified targets near Damascus on Tuesday.