Russia has rejected a demand by Israel that it stop using defense systems in Syria that jam GPS systems in Israeli airspace and affect landings by commercial aircraft at Ben Gurion Airport in the capital Tel Aviv, Israeli media reported Monday.
Israel sent a letter to Russia stating that the defense systems operated by Russia at Khmeimim Air Base in the Syrian port city of Latakia cause electromagnetic interference in the GPS systems of the planes landing in Tel Aviv, the official Israeli KAN channel reported.
Rejecting Israel’s demand, Moscow emphasized that the systems were placed to protect its soldiers in the region.
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Speaking to the KAN channel, a pilot working for an airline company at the airport said the electromagnetic effect was quite strong at the beginning of 2019 but later ended. However, they have once again witnessed a similar situation in the region near the airport in the past four weeks.
Israel launches attack on Syria
An Israeli air strike hit Syria’s Latakia port on Tuesday, the second such attack on the key facility this month, according to Syrian state media.
Since the outbreak of Syria’s civil war in 2011, Israel has routinely carried out air strikes on its strife-torn neighbour, mostly targeting Syrian government troops as well as allied Iran-backed forces and Hezbollah fighters.
Russian forces are jamming GPS signals across the region from #Syria. #Israel complained but Russia refused on the grounds that this is used defensively. https://t.co/NAhiIWJwMp
— Michael A. Horowitz (@michaelh992) January 31, 2022
“At around 03:21 AM, the Israeli enemy carried out an aerial aggression with several missiles from the direction of the Mediterranean… targeting the container yard in Latakia port,” Syrian state news agency SANA cited a military source as saying.
The strike caused “significant material damage” and led to fires, it added.
Asked about the strike, an Israeli army spokesman said: “We don’t comment on reports in foreign media”.
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Anadolu with additional input by GVS News Desk