An Israeli strike on Damascus airport on January 1 that killed two soldiers and shut the terminal for a short period appears to have caused more extensive damage than officials previously admitted, sources at the facility told The National.
Barely 24 hours into 2023, Israel carried out the year's first strikes on Syria having routinely hit what it says are Iranian arms shipments and threats to its security.
Syrian military sources said that Israel fired “several missiles towards Damascus International Airport, killing two soldiers and putting it out of service”.
Although the airport was back in service mere hours later — with improvised repairs — The National has learnt that the strikes were more serious than initially disclosed.
Damascus airport has two runways ― a northern one used mainly for civilian flights from the Syrian capital, and a southern runway that reports suggest is commonly used for weapons shipments from Iran.
While the civilian runway suffered less damage in the strikes, engineers were able to re-open the landing strip to allow flights to resume.
The southern runway, however, was hit by at least seven missiles, causing extensive damage.
Hours after the attack, Syria’s Transport Ministry said normal services had resumed and that the strikes caused no delays, save for a flight from Moscow being diverted to Latakia airport on the north-west coast.
“After the Israeli aggression, and in a record time, the maintenance workshops managed to remove debris from the runways and went on to conduct a successful engineering operation that sought to shorten the runway by 500 metres,” Director of Syrian Civil Aviation Bassem Mansour told local radio.
Satellite images of the airport taken since the attack appear to show damage to the northern runway as a strike crater about 500m from the north-east end. About 3,000m of the runway appears to be unaffected.
While Israel rarely discusses strikes it has carried out in Syria, it is believed to be behind dozens of operations in the country. Most are directed at Iranian and Hezbollah operatives, but some target Syrian military sites.
Damascus airport has become a frequent target to prevent shipments being flown in from Tehran.
“The reality is that the attacks are hitting the runways almost all the time, sometimes it's deliberately done as a warning, but like the attack last summer [June 2022] it was to paralyse traffic completely,” a member of the airport ground crew told The National.
“We managed to reduce the length of the runway, but sometimes real technical work needs time and materials, not everything is available to us.”
Syria is under heavy international sanctions, which block a lot of imported goods and materials.
The airport worker criticised Israel for targeting “civilian targets and terminals”, saying “this is a civilian airport at the end of the day, and it’s used by thousands of civilians daily”.
But the Aurora Intelligence group, which monitors the Syrian conflict closely, said “it was a significant strike designed to disable the southern runway which is known to be affiliated with the IRGC [Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps] and their activities”.
The group said that while it is not true that the southern runway is exclusively used by Iran, it is “largely viewed that way because most of the activity there is due to IRGC affiliated movement”.
They added that the January 1 attack was “the largest single strike we’ve seen on a runway” but said that there were similar strikes in June 2022 and December 2021 targeting the runway as well as simultaneous strikes on Damascus and Aleppo in August last year.
“This was seven, possibly eight [missiles]. The strike impact intensity ultimately determines how long this runway is out of order, we’ve seen the authorities patch a runway in 72 hours, but have seen others take two to three months.”
Ruwan Rejoleh, an analyst in Washington who follows the Syrian war closely, said that Israel’s new government was unlikely to halt the policy of regular strikes on Syria.
“The new right-wing government in Israel is likely to continue with air strikes targeting Iranian backed and linked logistical targets such as Damascus airport, amongst others; this has been a continuous policy and will seemingly be implemented as well in 2023.”
Syria’s superpower patron Russia is becoming increasingly distant from the situation as it turns its focus more to its overstretched Ukraine front.
Syria’s ageing military equipment and antique air defences struggle to deter Israeli attacks or defend vital military infrastructure.
While Russia had an advanced S-300 air defence system in Syria, it rarely fired on Israeli planes and Moscow has since removed it from the country for use in Ukraine.
While Israel has not commented on the attack, it came just days before military chief Maj Gen Oded Basiuk presented the army’s operational outlook for 2023.
“We see that our course of action in Syria is an example of how continuous and persistent military action leads to shaping and influencing the entire region. We will not accept Hezbollah 2.0 in Syria,” the outlook reads.
“We are conducting an accelerated campaign between campaigns — and not only in Syria. To this end, we have carried out dozens of strikes with hundreds of armaments in the past year.”
Bundesliga fixtures
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
BRIEF SCORES
England 353 and 313-8 dec
(B Stokes 112, A Cook 88; M Morkel 3-70, K Rabada 3-85)
(J Bairstow 63, T Westley 59, J Root 50; K Maharaj 3-50)
South Africa 175 and 252
(T Bavuma 52; T Roland-Jones 5-57, J Anderson 3-25)
(D Elgar 136; M Ali 4-45, T Roland-Jones 3-72)
Result: England won by 239 runs
England lead four-match series 2-1
Results
2pm: Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (Dirt) 1,200m, Winner: Mouheeb, Tom Marquand (jockey), Nicholas Bachalard (trainer)
2.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh68,000 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Honourable Justice, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
3pm: Handicap (TB) Dh84,000 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Dahawi, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
3.30pm: Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Dark Silver, Fernando Jara, Ahmad bin Harmash
4pm: Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (D) 1,600m, Winner: Dark Of Night. Antonio Fresu, Al Muhairi.
4.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh68,000 (D) 1,600m, Winner: Habah, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Tell-tale signs of burnout
- loss of confidence and appetite
- irritability and emotional outbursts
- sadness
- persistent physical ailments such as headaches, frequent infections and fatigue
- substance abuse, such as smoking or drinking more
- impaired judgement
- excessive and continuous worrying
- irregular sleep patterns
Tips to help overcome burnout
Acknowledge how you are feeling by listening to your warning signs. Set boundaries and learn to say ‘no’
Do activities that you want to do as well as things you have to do
Undertake at least 30 minutes of exercise per day. It releases an abundance of feel-good hormones
Find your form of relaxation and make time for it each day e.g. soothing music, reading or mindful meditation
Sleep and wake at the same time every day, even if your sleep pattern was disrupted. Without enough sleep condition such as stress, anxiety and depression can thrive.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
PAKISTAN v SRI LANKA
Twenty20 International series
Thu Oct 26, 1st T20I, Abu Dhabi
Fri Oct 27, 2nd T20I, Abu Dhabi
Sun Oct 29, 3rd T20I, Lahore
Tickets are available at www.q-tickets.com
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Dates for the diary
To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:
- September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
- October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
- October 26 to November 4 International pilates instructor Courtney Miller will be on hand at the studio, offering classes.
- November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
- December 11 Yogeswari, an advanced certified Jivamukti teacher, will be visiting the studio.
- February 2, 2018 Bodytree will host its 4th annual yoga market.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The biog
Favourite car: Ferrari
Likes the colour: Black
Best movie: Avatar
Academic qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in media production from the Higher Colleges of Technology and diploma in production from the New York Film Academy
World Cup final
Who: France v Croatia
When: Sunday, July 15, 7pm (UAE)
TV: Game will be shown live on BeIN Sports for viewers in the Mena region
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
The%20specs
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Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
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The BIO
Favourite piece of music: Verdi’s Requiem. It’s awe-inspiring.
Biggest inspiration: My father, as I grew up in a house where music was constantly played on a wind-up gramophone. I had amazing music teachers in primary and secondary school who inspired me to take my music further. They encouraged me to take up music as a profession and I follow in their footsteps, encouraging others to do the same.
Favourite book: Ian McEwan’s Atonement – the ending alone knocked me for six.
Favourite holiday destination: Italy - music and opera is so much part of the life there. I love it.
