Fifteen people, including women and children, were killed and 16 injured in Israeli airstrikes on residential areas in Damascus and its outskirts, Syrian state media reported.

The strikes, among the deadliest in months, targeted buildings in the Mezzah and Qudsaya areas.

Israel claimed the attacks were aimed at Islamic Jihad’s command centers, while the group denied this, stating civilian sites were hit.

Syria condemned the strikes as “brutal crimes,” linking them to escalating Israeli aggression, CNN has reported.

The attacks follow recent airstrikes in the Damascus countryside that killed seven civilians and targeted Hezbollah-linked sites, according to Syrian sources.

Written by B.C. Begley