IDF: Syrian Antiaircraft Missile Exploded Over Central Israel

The IDF said on Friday that explosions heard over central Israel overnight Thursday were caused by a Syrian antiaircraft missile that exploded off the coast.

No sirens sounded and there were no reports of injuries or damage in Israel. The remains of the missile were located in Tel Aviv on Friday morning.

The projectile was fired following reports from Syria that its air defenses shot down missiles fired by Israel in the skies over Damascus.

“The Israeli enemy carried out an air aggression from the direction southeast of Beirut, targeting some points in the vicinity of the city of Damascus,” a Syrian military source was quoted as saying in a statement published on state media.

Syrian media showed scenes of air defenses shooting at targets over the city.

“Our air defense confronted the aggressor’s missiles and shot down most of them, and the losses were limited to materiel,” the statement said.

The IDF declined to comment on the reported strike in Syria.

The Britain-based Observatory for Human Rights reported that weapons development centers near Damascus used by Iran-backed militias had been targeted in the alleged Israeli strikes.

On Aug. 20, Syrian surface-to-air missile systems (SAM) fired against alleged Israeli airstrikes that killed four pro-Iranian fighters in Damascus. Russian military sources claim that 22 Israeli missiles were shot down during the attack.