TEHRAN, Aug. 23 (MNA) – 2 Israeli F-16 fighter jets fired 8 cruise missiles at Damascus outskirts on Monday from airspace above the Golan Heights, said deputy head of Russian Defense Ministry's Center for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides in Syria.

"On August 21, from 23:03 to 23:10 [08:03 to 08:10 pm GMT], two F-16 tactical fighters of the Israeli air force attacked facilities in the vicinity of the city of Damascus with eight cruise missiles from the airspace of the occupied Golan Heights. Israeli airstrike injured one Syrian soldier," Vadim Kulit told a briefing.

SANA had earlier reported that Syria's air defenses had intercepted "hostile targets" in the Damascus area, without providing further details.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based so-called monitor, said the targeted areas included “warehouses and military sites” belonging to Hezbollah. The Lebanese resistance movement has been aiding Damascus in its efforts to fight off foreign-backed violence.

The Golan Heights have been under Israeli occupation since 1967, when the regime launched a large-scale war against the regional Arab states, including Syria.

Tel Aviv has been using the territory as a launchpad for its acts of military aggression against the Arab nation ever since.

The attacks intensified after 2011 when Syria found itself in the grip of all-out foreign-backed militancy and terrorism.

The regime has been also using the occupied territory to provide safe passage and medical treatment for the anti-Syria Takfiri terrorists, who would flee there from the Syrian military's counter-terrorism operations.

Earlier this month, the occupying entity similarly attacked areas near Damascus, killing four Syrian soldiers and wounding as many others.

The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates subsequently called on the United Nations to condemn Israel's incursions, asking it to take "immediate action to compel the occupying entity to stop its aggressive policies."

MNA/PR