An Israeli airstrike on a car near Syria’s capital Damascus has killed Salman Jumaa, a senior Hezbollah figure responsible for liaising with the Syrian army, a Lebanese security source told Reuters.

Syria’s state news agency had reported the strike on the airport road but did not offer details on casualties.

The Israeli military confirmed in a later statement taking out Jumaa in what it called an intelligence-based strike in Damascus, saying his killing “degrades both Hezbollah’s presence in Syria and Hezbollah’s ongoing force-building efforts”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that he was “playing with fire” by allegedly allowing Iran to transfer weapons to its allies via Syria.