Suspected Israeli strikes hit Damascus military airport

A series of large explosions hit a military airport in the Syrian capital Damascus late on Thursday night, in what is believed to be an Israeli airstrike on the facility.

The Syrian army accused Israel of the assault and warned Tel Aviv of the repercussions of what it said was a "flagrant" attack.

The army said several rockets were fired from northern Israel just after midnight which landed in the compound of the airport, Syrian state media reported.

Images and videos of the explosions at the Mezzeh military airport were shared by activists on social media, showing large plumes of smoke rising from the scene of the attack.

Pro-regime news outlet Al-Masdar News reported that the explosions were caused by an Israeli air raid on an ammunitions depot at the airbase.

It reported that the large explosions could be heard across the capital.

It is still unclear if the attack has caused any casualties.

Another Israeli strike on the same airport was reported in December, which coincided with attacks on several Hizballah positions on the outskirts of Damascus.

The Mezzeh airport is an important military installation used by a Syria's elite Republican Guards.

Earlier on Thursday, a suicide bomber killed at least eight people when he struck the capital’s the heavily guarded neighbourhood of Kafr Sousa, which houses important security installations.

"Eight people died when a suicide bomber targeted Kafr Sousa" in the southwest of the capital, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

"At least four of them were soldiers, including a colonel," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said.