Cairo, 14 November 2024 (dpa/MIA) - A total of 20 people were killed and 21 others injured in Israeli airstrikes on two areas in and near the Syrian capital Damascus, a war monitor reported.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights added that the strikes had hit buildings in the Damascus neighbourhoods of Mezzeh and Qudsaya.

The fatalities included at least three members of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group and three civilians, the Britain-based observatory reported. 

The monitor had initially put the death toll at 17.

This year, Israel has carried out a total of 149 attacks in war-torn Syria, according to the monitoring group. 

Syria's state news agency SANA reported that the attacks on Damascus had left at least 15 people dead and 16 others injured.

Israel has been bombing targets in Syria to prevent Iran and its allied militias from expanding their military influence in the country. Israeli attacks on Syria have increased since the Gaza war began in October last year.

MIA file photo