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Russian MoD: Israeli strikes on Syria nearly downed airbus-320 with 172 passengers on board

07 February 2020 11:13 (UTC +04:00)

The Russian Ministry of Defence says Israeli F-16 fighter jets carried out strikes with eight air-to-surface missiles on Damascus' suburbs early Thursday, without entering Syrian airspace, APA reports citing Sputnik.

According to the Russian military, a civil Airbus-320 with 172 passengers on board was trying to land at Damascus airport during the Israeli airstrikes that night, but landed instead at the Russian airbase in Hmeymim.

According to the Russian Defence Ministry’s spokesman, it has already become a common practice for the Israeli air force to use civil aircraft to shield their own fighter jets from the Syrian air defence systems.