DAMASCUS/JERUSALEM, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Israeli forces on Thursday conducted airstrikes on residential buildings in Syria's capital Damascus and its vicinity, killing at least 15 people and injuring 16 others, according to the Syrian Defense Ministry and state TV.
The ministry stated that around 3:20 p.m. local time (1220 GMT), the Israeli army launched an air attack from the direction of the occupied Golan Heights, targeting several residential buildings in the Mazzeh neighborhood west of Damascus and the Qudsaya suburb northwest of the capital.
The airstrikes "led to the martyrdom of 15 people and the injury of 16 others, including women and children," as shown by initial estimates, along with significant damage to private property and civilian buildings, the ministry said.
Meanwhile, state TV reported Israeli airstrikes on three buildings in Mazzeh and another strike on a building belonging to an educational complex, situated in a residential zone in Qudsaya.
Following the strikes, loud explosions echoed across the city, with thick plumes of smoke rising from targeted sites. Ambulances and emergency services rushed to the scene to tend to the victims.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also confirmed that residential buildings in Mazzeh and Qudsaya were pounded.
The Israeli military, in a statement, said its warplanes bombed command centers and infrastructure sites belonging to the Islamic Jihad militant group.
Israel asserted that Islamic Jihad participated in a Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed approximately 1,200 people and led to the kidnapping of around 250 others.
The Israeli military added that it would continue to act against Islamic Jihad "wherever necessary." ■
