Syrian jets hit targets inside Damascus for first time
Regime air raids strike targets inside Syrian capital for first time after assassination
A Syrian air force general was assassinated in Damascus as a Syrian fighter jet reportedly hit targets inside the capital for the first time.
"As part of their campaign to target national personalities and scientists, armed terrorist groups assassinated Air Force General Abdullah Mahmud al-Khalidi in the Damascus district of Rukn al-Din," state television said, using the regime term for armed rebels.
The general was a member of the Syrian Air Force command. He was shot dead on Monday evening as he left a friend's home.
News of the killing came after regime warplanes launched their heaviest air strikes to date, with more than 60 raids carried out on Monday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
It said the campaign continued yesterday with targets inside Damascus being hit by a fighter jet for the first time.
The warplane dropped four bombs on the eastern neighbourhood of Jobar, near the opposition-held suburb of Zamalka, where rebels were in fierce clashes with regime troops.