Israeli airstrikes allegedly damaged Syrian airport – ApNews

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The alleged Israeli airstrikes on Aleppo International Airport have created multiple craters on the runway, satellite imagery analyzed Thursday showed Associated Press. A United Nations spokesman criticized the attack for disrupting relief efforts in the earthquake-hit country.

The Aleppo airport attack comes after Israel earlier struck the airfield as part of a campaign to disrupt Iranian arms supplies to the country. These attacks continue despite Israeli civilian protests and in light of Iran's nuclear program moving closer to enriching uranium to a level enough to build a nuclear weapon.

Satellite photos taken Tuesday by Planet Labs PBC show vehicles clustered on the airport's only paved runway around the damage. terminal turned out to be a new big funnel.

It was revealed that the strike was also carried out on three repaired sites subject to alleged Israeli attacks in September. The airstrip was also damaged in late August at a different location.

A suspected Israeli airstrike targeting Aleppo International Airport in Syria again left multiple craters on its runway, satellite images analyzed by The Associated Press showed Thursday.https://t.co/WWWB5o5sGd pic.twitter.com/xCqE5P9v8W

— ZamanAlwsl (@EnAlwsl) March 9, 2023

Aleppo Airport, like many others in the Middle East, is a dual-use facility that uses both civil and military aviation. Iran played a key role in arming and supporting President Bashar al-Assad in his country's long civil war.
< br /> The Aleppo airport was closed after the attack, and the Syrian Foreign Ministry described it as a “double crime”, as the civilian airport and the main route for delivering aid to areas hit by last month's earthquake were hit.

Authorities report that relief flights have now been diverted to Damascus and Latakia airports.

Syrian state news agency SANA, citing the country's transport minister, said on Thursday that the airport would reopen on Friday.

On Wednesday, a UN official overseeing relief efforts in Syria asked for “every possible precaution” ot; to “spare civilians and civilian objects in the conduct of hostilities.”

The Israeli Prime Minister's office declined to comment Thursday when contacted by the AP.

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