Reuters: Israel Strikes One Of Syria's Main Airbases Used By Russia

There are injuries and fatalities.

The Israeli army launched an airstrike on the Syrian city of Tartus near a military base in the southern city of Hama that Russia, as a key ally of Syrian President Bashar al Assad, has used to carry out raids against Syrian rebels, Reuters reported, citing Syrian opposition sources.

Syria's state media said the strike killed two Syrian soldiers and wounded six others. They said the Israeli missiles hit the outskirts of Hama and caused only some material damage.

Israel has launched hundreds of strikes against Iranian targets in Syria in recent years, but has mostly avoided hitting coastal provinces where Russian military forces are concentrated.

Israeli and regional military experts believe the strikes are part of an escalating low-intensity conflict aimed at slowing Iran's strengthening in Syria.

The Syrian civil war began on March 15, 2011 with demonstrations that were part of the Arab Spring. Later, they escalated into an uprising and civil war in 2012. Protesters demanded Assad's resignation and an end to nearly 50 years of one-party Baathist rule.

The government of Bashar al-Assad has resorted to the use of force in attempts to suppress the protests.

Since the beginning of the conflict, Russia has been a major supporter of the Assad regime. Arms, military equipment, ammunition, food, fuel and lubricants, and funds were sent to Syria

On September 30, 2015, the open intervention of the Russian armed forces in Syria began. Russian officials recognise that the purpose of the "operation" is to help the Syrian government retake the territory controlled, among others, by forces in opposition to the Assad regime.