At least 11 Syrian troops killed in blasts at Hama military airbase

At least 11 Syrian regime troops have been killed and many more missing after several explosions hit a key Syrian regime airbase near the central city of Hama.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab

18 May, 2018

Clouds of smoke were seen rising from Hama airport [Twitter]

At least 11 Syrian regime troops are thought to have died when several large explosions rocked a military airbase outside the central city of Hama Friday, the cause of which is not yet clear.

Local witnesses told The New Arab that they saw more than 11 corpses of regime troops arrive at Hama's hospitals, as well as dozens of wounded soldiers.

Sources added that paramedics had said that many more troops were missing under the rubble caused by the explosions.

In addition, the regime has reportedly moved its helicopters to another airbase on the other side of town, to protect the fleet from further explosions.

Reports from the scene say that Syrian warplanes have probably suffered some damage.

Six explosions went off near ammunitions and fuel storage facilities at the airbase, according to reports.

Pictures of the blasts emerged on social media showing huge clouds of smoke rising into the sky.

Twitter Post

"The explosions struck several regime depots of weapons and fuel at Hama military airport," Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said.

Official Syrian state media also reported massive explosions near Hama and pictures posted on social media showed a huge plume of grey smoke billowing into the sky.

Amid speculation of another Israeli strike against military targets in Syria, Abdel Rahman said it was not yet clear what caused the blasts.

Israel has carried out several air strikes against Iranian targets in Syria in recent weeks, with the latest wave coming a week ago and bringing the region closer to a major flare-up.