Syrian army: Israeli jet shot down, another hit

The Syrian army says four Israeli jets breached the Arab country’s airspace on Friday morning, adding its air defense shot down one of the aircraft and hit another.

Zionist regime’s warplanes "penetrated our airspace at 2:40 a.m. local time (0040 GMT) via Lebanese territory and hit a military target on the way to Palmyra," said an army statement carried by state news agency SANA.

"Our air defense engaged them and shot down one warplane over occupied territory, hit another one, and forced the rest to flee," the army said, apparently referring to the Golan Heights.  

The Syrian army also slammed Tel Aviv’s strikes as “an act of aggression” meant to assist the Takfiri Daesh terror group.

Israel’s aerial assaults are “a desperate attempt to raise their (Daesh terrorists') deteriorating morale and divert attention away from the victories which Syrian Arab Army is making in the face of the terrorist organizations,” the statement read.

The Syrian army recaptured Palmyra from Daesh on March 2. In January, the army accused Israel of carrying out missile strikes on the Mazzeh Air Base near Damascus.

The Syria army underlined its resolve to repel any future Israeli attack by “all possible means.”

Zionist regime has carried out air raids against Syrian-based targets on many occasions, but it rarely acknowledges the attacks. On Friday, however, the Israeli military acknowledged that its jets bombed several targets in Syria.

ME