At Least 4 Syrian Soldiers Killed in Suspected Israeli Airstrikes Around Damascus

BEIRUT (AP) -- Israeli airstrikes hit areas around Damascus early Monday, killing at least four Syrian soldiers, Syrian state media reported.

Syrian state television, citing a military source, said four other soldiers were also wounded while the strikes caused "some material damage."

Israeli authorities did not immediately comment.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition-linked war monitor, said the strikes targeted weapons and munitions warehouses and positions of Iran-backed militias around Damascus. They say at least six were killed and seven others wounded.

The Observatory said the strikes mark 22nd time Israel has struck Syria this year.

Israel, which has vowed to stop Iranian entrenchment next door, has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets in government-controlled parts of neighboring Syria in recent years, but it rarely acknowledges them.

Israel has also targeted the international airports in Damascus and the northern Syrian city of Aleppo several times over the past few years, often putting it out of commission.