"The Air Force on Sunday began an unannounced exercise called the Rose of Galilee. The drills, supervised by the corps commander, Maj. Gen. Amikam Nurkin, are intended to improve the Air Force's combat readiness in the northern area," the IDF said in a statement.
The military has warned that the country might see an increased movement of aircraft, and echoes of explosions might be heard over the territory, while the exercise is expected to finish on Wednesday.
"The drills simulate combat scenarios in the northern area, and all of the Air Force units will be trained to carry out core tasks, including maintaining air superiority, protecting the country's airspace, as well as attacks and intelligence gathering missions. The exercise will examine planning, control and execution processes, as well as end-to-end logistics and technological capabilities," the statement read.
Earlier in the day, the Syrian air defense systems downed most of Israel's missiles when they were repelling an assault over the western suburbs of Damascus, according to state news agency SANA. When asked about the attack, the Israeli army told Sputnik that it does not give comments to foreign media.
