Israel has reportedly struck a Russian airbase in Syria, causing a huge fire to break out.
Thirty missiles are reported to have hit the Khmeimim airbase in the early hours of Thursday morning. The IDF has not claimed responsibility for the attack.
The strike lasted 45 minutes and is believed to have been carried out by naval warships. Unverified video images show a huge fireball and flashes on the horizon.
Detonations could be heard for hours following the attack, according to eyewitnesses.
Following the alleged Israeli bombardment, a Russian air patrol was observed over Latakia skies.
The Express has contacted the Israel Defence Force for a statement on the alleged attack.
Khmeimim airbase is located southeast of the city of Latakia and has been operated by the Russian military since 2017.
Syrian TV journalist Abdullah Almousa claimed a warehouse on the airbase had been targeted in the strikes.
He said the attack was connected to the delivery of Iranian cargo to the airbase in recent days by the Qeshm Fars Airlines.
The airline company was supposedly delivering humanitarian aid for Lebanese citizens who had fled to Syria.
However, suspicions were raised after the flights arrived without any official announcements.
“An Iranian Boeing-747 with the code QFZ9951, operated by Fars Air Qeshm, landed stealthily at Latakia Airport, with its navigation systems off, the previous morning,” a source told the Syrian journalist.
“It departed eight hours before the attack,” they added.
The pro-government Sham FM radio said Syrian air defences worked to confront “targets” over the sea in the Lattakia area.
The station later reported that firefighters were working to extinguish a blaze in the coastal city of Jableh, just south of Lattakia.
Putin has been a staunch supporter of Syria’s dictator Bashar al-Assad and came to his rescue during the civil war in the country.
At one stage during the conflict, over 60,000 Russian troops were deployed to Syria, according to Russia’s Ministry of Defence.
