Pro-gov't media say Syrian air defenses respond to possible Israeli missile attack

DAMASCUS, Dec. 2 (Xinhua) -- Syrian air defenses responded to a possible Israeli missile attack against military positions in the countryside of Damascus midnight Friday, said a pro-government media outlet.

Air defenses were triggered by a missile attack and people in the capital heard explosions in different areas, the al-Watan online newspaper reported, without providing further details.

Israel has yet to comment on the report.

Syrian pro-government activists said the "Israeli attack" targeted military positions in the Kisweh area in the southwestern countryside of Damascus, causing several explosions that shook the area and reverberated across the capital.

Meanwhile, the online media "Damascus-now" posted a video on its Facebook page, showing "the moment when the air defenses destroyed an "enemy target" in western Ghouta in rural Damascus.

Witnesses told Xinhua that cautious calm prevailed in western Ghouta following the attack, which came hours after rebels downed a Syrian military helicopter there.

Syria's rebels fired a missile at the helicopter near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and the Lebanese border, said the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Israeli officials have said several times that they would not accept any Iranian influence near their borders.

The Syrian government has repeatedly accused Israel of aiding the rebels near the Golan Heights.

Both the Syrian government and opposition are participating in United Nations (UN)-mediated Syria peace talks in Geneva.

UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said Friday he has distributed a 12-point post-war vision document for the Syrian invitees to discuss when they resume their ongoing talks someday next week. Enditem