Damascus, Dec 16 (IANS): Israeli warplanes carried out a series of heavy airstrikes in the northwestern Syrian province of Tartus late Sunday and early Monday, hitting at least 18 military targets, a war monitor reported on Monday.

According to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and eyewitness accounts, the Israeli strikes were so intense that earthquake detection apps recorded a magnitude 3 earthquake in Tartus. Online videos showed massive fires and explosions.

The observatory said these raids bring the total number of Israeli airstrikes on Syrian military sites to 473 since the Bashar al-Assad government collapsed on December 8.

The Israeli strikes have focused on destroying remnants of military infrastructure linked to the former Syrian leadership, including airports, radar installations, air defenses, and a wide array of weapons and missile depots, said the report.

Among the targets hit were the 23rd Air Defense Brigade near the village of Huraysun in the coastal region and facilities in Isqabla, Dahar al-Baloutiyah, al-Kharab, and Marsahin, Xinhua news agency reported.

Two additional sites near Drekish and several missile and air defense depots near the village of Malakah were also struck, along with bases north of Akkar Plain inside Syrian territory. Missile platforms in Battalion 107 in the Zama area of Rural Tartus were also targeted.

Explosions reverberated through Tartus as missiles within the warehouses detonated. The strikes caused extensive material damage, but there were no immediate reports of casualties, the observatory said.

In a separate incident, an explosion rocked the only bridge over the Euphrates River connecting Deir al-Zour city to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces-held village of Hatlah, though it remained unclear whether the incident was related to Israel.