Defense chief says Israel eliminates Syrian Navy

 Israeli forces destroyed Syria’s Navy in the early hours of Tuesday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said during a visit to a naval base in Haifa.

"The Israeli Navy carried out an operation to destroy the Syrian Navy in the small hours of today and succeeded," Katz said, as cited by the N14 TV channel.

Katz added that the Israel Defense Forces had been active in Syria for several days, working to eliminate "strategic weapons threatening the State of Israel."

  Israel has struck the Mezzeh neighborhood in the southwest of Damascus, the Al Jazeera television channel reported.

According to Al Jazeera, the strike targeted a military airfield in the area and planes and helicopters deployed there. No further details were provided.

 Israeli strikes on the Syrian city of Latakia have destroyed some of the country’s warships, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said, citing a source.

According to the source, the warships were equipped with sea-to-sea anti-ship missiles. The Israeli raid was geared to wipe out ships and any weapons they have that could have been used against Israel in the future, the source said.