Damascus International Airport halts all flights

Syria's transport ministry cites 'technical issues' for the suspension

Damascus International Airport in Syria has halted all flights. Reuters

Damascus International Airport halted all flights on Friday because of technical issues, the Syrian state news agency, Sana, reported.

All incoming and outgoing flights have been suspended until the problems are resolved, the transport ministry said.

The ministry said that dates for the resumption of operations will be announced "as soon as the equipment is repaired to ensure the safety and security of operational movement".

Cham Wings Airline, a private Syrian company, said it was rerouting all its flights to Aleppo International Airport.

The moves comes after an Israeli air strike damaged the runway, according to sources who spoke to AFP.

An airport employee told the agency that the dawn strikes by Israel had affected the facility.

"We had to postpone all flights for at least 48 hours and some flights have been rerouted through Aleppo airport," the airport employee said.

The Israeli strikes targeted southern Damascus, according to Syrian state media, which said missiles were fired from the occupied Golan Heights at about 4.20am.

Syrian air defences intercepted most of the missiles, but those that reached their target injured at least one civilian and caused material damage, Sana said.

The transport ministry's statement, however, did not refer to the Israeli attack.

The Israeli bombings damaged the runway of the airport after targeting "warehouses of Iranian militias" near the airport, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Friday.

The UK-based war monitor, which relies on a wide network of sources in Syria, said that at least three such positions were hit, leaving several people injured.

It is not unusual for Israel to attack targets in Syria that it believes are linked to Iran, where Tehran-backed militias, including Lebanon's Hezbollah, are stationed to help Syrian President Bashar Al Assad.

AFP contributed to this report