DAMASCUS, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Explosions were heard here as the Syrian air defenses responded to "hostile targets," the country's state media said on Tuesday.
Powerful explosions were heard in the capital, particularly in the city's west, with people awakened by the blasts.
State media said the air defenses were intercepting an attack in the capital's vicinity.
According to eyewitnesses and local media, explosions rocked the capital before daybreak Tuesday in what appeared to be an Israeli aerial attack.
The explosions were heard across the capital just as news was emerging about Israeli forces beginning a ground incursion into southern Lebanon. The sounds were heard in the western Mazzeh neighborhood, but the exact target was still unknown.
People posted footage of a fire in the western Mazzeh Villas neighborhood.
Emerging reports indicate casualties and property damage from the Israeli attack.
Footage shared on social media showed flames engulfing parts of the upscale western Mazzeh Villas neighborhood, where eyewitnesses reported seeing a passenger bus scorched on a road.
According to the Syrian Defense Ministry, Israeli airstrikes have resulted in the deaths of three civilians and injuries to nine others.
The attack, launched at approximately 2:05 a.m. local time (2305 GMT), involved Israeli fighter jets and drones striking multiple targets in the city from the direction of the occupied Syrian Golan Heights, the ministry said in a statement.
It said Syrian air defenses managed to intercept and down most of the incoming missiles and drones.
No more details were provided regarding the specific locations hit or the extent of property damage.
Syrian state TV also reported the death of a journalist, who was killed when shrapnel struck her home in the area. The state TV further reported the journalist killed in the attack has been later identified as Safaa Ahmad.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the attack was an assassination attempt in Mazzeh area with the target still unknown.
The UK-based watchdog group said Syrian air defenses intercepted at least two Israeli missiles.
The attack comes amid heightened tension in the region with Israel launching attacks in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria as part of its alleged "self-defense" strategy. ■
