Four soldiers were killed and one was injured in <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/syria/2022/10/24/israeli-strikes-near-damascus-wound-syrian-soldier/" target="_blank">Israeli air strikes</a> on central and coastal regions of Syria early on Saturday, the Syrian military has said. A military official said the strikes on military positions happened at about 6.30am, the state-run Sana news agency reported The attacks caused "material damage", the official said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reported that loud explosions were heard in the coastal province of Latakia, as well as the Hama and Homs provinces in central Syria. Since civil war broke out in <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/tags/syria/" target="_blank">Syria</a> in 2011, Israel has carried out strikes against Syrian troops as well as Iran-backed forces and fighters from the Lebanese Hezbollah group. While Israel rarely comments on the attacks, it has said it carried out hundreds of strikes. It has said its campaign is necessary to stop Iran from gaining a foothold in Syria.