Syria reports Israel airstrikes on central province of Homs

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syrian state television is reporting that the country’s air defenses are responding  to an Israeli airstrike targeting areas close to the historic Syrian town of Palmyra in the central province of Homs. The report quotes an unidentified military official as saying the strike occurred shortly before midnight Wednesday and it targeted a telecommunications tower and some posts around it, causing only material damage. The strikes came five days after Syrian state media reported that Israeli strikes in Homs province wounded six soldiers. Israel has staged hundreds of strikes against Iran-linked military targets in Syria over the years but rarely acknowledges or discusses such operations.