MOSCOW, October 14. /TASS/. Israeli F-16 jet fighters attacked a target in Syria’s Homs province on October 13, Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria deputy head Counter Admiral Vadim Kulit said Thursday, adding that air defense was not engaged due to civilian aircraft present in the area at the moment.

"Between 23:35 and 23:39 [local time] on October 13, four Israeli Air Force F-16 tactical jet fighters entered the Syrian airspace near the At Tanf area in the Homs province, occupied by the US, and attacked the phosphate ore processing plant near Palmyra. Besides, one communications tower was destroyed. One Syrian serviceman was killed and three were injured in the airstrike. The plant sustained material damage," he said.

According to the military official, "the Syrian military command decided not to engage air defense systems, because two civilian aircraft, en route from Dubai to Beirut and from Baghdad to Damascus, were present in the air defense area of effect."

Kulit added that, in the past 24 hours, 10 shellings by the former Nusra Front terror group were registered in the Idlib de-escalation area. A grenade dropped from a quadcopter launched by terrorists injured three Syrian servicemen near the settlement of Mortlu.