Israel strikes hit bases in central Syria, kill four in south

BEIRUT (Reuters) -Israeli shelling killed four people in southern Syria on Tuesday, Syria's state news agency reported, after the Israeli military said its troops had clashed with militants there who had opened fire on them.

The violence along the border area marks increased friction between Israel and Syria, where a new Islamist-led leadership has been installed after rebels ousted former leader Bashar al-Assad from power in December.

Israel has since said it will not tolerate an Islamist militant presence in southern Syria and sent its own troops into Syria's border zone. Syria's leadership has said it does not intend to open a front against Israel.

On Tuesday, the Israeli military said militants in southern Syria opened fire toward Israeli troops, without specifying whether the Israeli troops were within Syrian territory when they were targeted.

The Israeli military said its troops returned fire and that an Israeli warplane struck the militants. It gave no details on casualties but said "hits were identified".

Syria's state news agency said Israeli tank fire on Koya, a town in the southern province of Daraa, had killed four people and wounded others, including a woman. A Syrian security source told Reuters the death toll was expected to rise.

Earlier, Israel said it had attacked two military bases in Homs province in central Syria.

"A short while ago, the IDF struck military capabilities that remained at the Syrian military bases of Tadmur and T4," an Israeli military statement said.

Israel spent years carrying out airstrikes on Syria during Assad's rule, targeting Iran-linked military installations and weapons transfers from Tehran intended for the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, which was deployed in Syrian territory.

That arms route was cut when Assad was toppled but Israel has continued to carry out strikes on Syrian military bases.

The European Union's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned on Tuesday that Israel's strikes into Syria "risk further escalation".

Speaking at a joint press conference with Israel's foreign minister Giden Saar, Kallas said the pair had discussed Israel's actions.

"And we (the EU) feel that these things are unnecessary, because Syria is right now not attacking Israel," Kallas said.

(Reporting by Maya Gebeily, Enas Alashray and Yomna Ehab in Cairo, Jana Choukeir in Dubai; Editing by Angus MacSwan)