GAZA (REUTERS) - An Israeli air strike in Damascus overnight killed two members of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the militant group said on Monday (Feb 24).

Israeli fighter jets launched air strikes on suspected Islamic Jihad positions in Syria just before midnight on Sunday after the militant group and Israeli forces clashed around Gaza earlier in the day.

The strikes in the Adeliyah region outside Damascus targeted what the Israeli military called "a hub of Islamic Jihad's activity in Syria", including the research and development of weapons.

Islamic Jihad later said in a statement two of its members were killed in the strike.

The Syrian state news agency SANA quoted a military source as saying Israeli aircraft entered Syrian airspace and targeted areas around Damascus with a wave of guided missiles.

Syrian state-run al-Ikhbariya television aired footage of what it said were explosions in the Damascus night sky showing Syria's air defence system shooting down missiles.

The Syrian military source said most missiles were destroyed before reaching their targets and the aftermath of the strike was being assessed.