Russia condemns alleged Israeli airstrikes on Syria

Russia condemned on Tuesday alleged recent Israeliairstrikes in Syria, saying such attacks "grossly violate Syria'ssovereignty."Russia has managed to maintain close relations with Syria and Israeldespite tensions between those neighbouring countries throughout theSyrian civil war as Russia's military supports the Syrian state.Six Israeli warplanes coming from Lebanese airspace conducted aseries of missile strikes on Syrian territory on Sunday night, theRussian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.Sixteen people were killed in the strikes, including a small child,the Russian ministry said. "This Israeli attack was the largestaction of its kind since May 2018," the statement said. "This escalation evokes extreme concern," it said, adding that suchactions, "grossly violating Syria's sovereignty," have the potentialto destabilize the region.Israel has not confirmed conducting such an attack. Senior military advisers from Russia, Israel and the United Statesmet in Israel last week for talks focused on improving the securitysituation in the Middle East, particularly regarding Syria.