Smoke billows above buildings after an Israeli strike on the outskirts of Damascus on Nov 22, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)

DAMASCUS - Israeli missiles hit multiple sites in the countryside of Syria's capital Damascus after midnight Sunday, a war monitor reported.

At least two locations were struck -- one harboring a weapons shipment within a military installation used by Syrian military forces and the other near an engineering battalion in the Qalamoun rugged region in the northern countryside of Damascus.

The attacks triggered massive explosions, and Syrian ground defenses scrambled to intercept incoming threats, according to Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

ALSO READ: 7 killed as Israeli missile attack targets central Syria sites

The strikes mark the latest escalation in Israeli military actions against Syria. According to the Observatory, 16 Israeli aerial assaults and eight ground operations have been documented so far this year.