Israeli airstrikes in Syria killed six, war monitor says

Israel's military launched "large-scale" raids on 12 Syrian and Iranian targets in Syria on Saturday after an Israeli fighter jet crashed under fire from Syrian air defences.

It marked the first time Israel publicly acknowledged attacking what it identified as Iranian targets in Syria since the war began.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Sunday that the strikes killed six Syrian regime troops as well as Syrian and non-Syrian allied troops.

Israel's raids came after it intercepted what it said was an Iranian drone entering its airspace from Syria.

Israel has recently issued several stern warnings about the increased Iranian involvement along its borders with Syria and Lebanon.

On Sunday, Israel's minister of intelligence said the airstrikes had sent a clear message to Iran that it won't tolerate an Iranian military foothold on its doorstep.

Israel Katz said it will take the Iranians time to "digest, understand and ask how Israel knew how to hit those sites."

Iran on Saturday denounced Israeli "lies" and said the Syrian regime had the right to "legitimate self-defence" in response to airstrikes launched by Tel Aviv after an alleged drone incursion into its territory.

The Israeli strikes marked Israel's most serious engagement in neighbouring Syria since fighting there began in 2011.