Syria accused Israel of bombing its territory on Thursday and warned that it could respond, but Israel Radio carried a denial that there had been an air strike.

The official Syrian news agency said that there were no casualties or damage and that Syrian air defenses fired on the incoming planes shortly after midnight. Israel Radio, quoting an unidentified military source, said that there had been no air strike on Syria. But a military spokesman told Reuters, “We’re still checking.”

The Syrian news agency SANA said the aircraft “infiltrated Syrian airspace through the northern border coming from the direction of the Mediterranean and headed towards northeastern territory, breaking the sound barrier.”
It added, “The Syrian Arab Republic warns the government of the Israeli enemy and reserves the right to respond according to what it sees fit.” Local residents said that they heard the sound of five planes or more above Tal al-Abiad area on Syria’s border with Turkey, around 160 km north of the Syrian city of Rakka.

An Israeli military source earlier said that the air force had been carrying out a major exercise this week.Tensions between the two neighbours have been high in recent months, with some Israeli intelligence officials suggesting that President Bashar al-Assad’s administration might be ready to try to take by force, parts of the Golan Heights, which Israel captured in the war of 1967.