Russia's Foreign Ministry on Sunday said that it strongly condemned an Israeli air strike on the Syrian city of Damascus and its surroundings, calling it a "flagrant violation" of international law.
"We strongly urge the Israeli side to stop armed provocations against the Syrian Arab Republic and refrain from steps that are fraught with dangerous consequences for the entire region," spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
Witnesses and officials said an Israeli rocket strike early on Sunday hit a building in central Damascus's Kafr Sousa neighbourhood near a large, heavily guarded security complex close to Iranian installations, killing five people.
Russia has long allied itself with the Syrian regime. Moscow's decision to intervene militarily in Syria in 2015 effectively preserved Bashar al-Assad's grip on power in Damascus.