Israel conducts deadly strikes on Syria : 7 people killed

BEIRUT, Nov 27 (AFP): Israel conducted strikes on the Syrian border with Lebanon that a war monitor said killed seven people, hours ahead of a ceasefire in the war with Hezbollah.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Syria's President Bashar al-Assad he was "playing with fire" on Tuesday, as he announced the truce with Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Assad is a key ally and backer of Hezbollah, and Syria has served as the main conduit of weapons for the armed group from Iran to Lebanon.

Hezbollah deployed fighters into Syria during its civil war, and played a key role in propping up Assad's regime during the revolt that erupted in 2011.

The nighttime strikes hit border crossings between Syria and Lebanon, killing seven people including two Syrian soldiers, a child and a Syrian Red Crescent volunteer, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Syria's defence ministry said earlier that six people were killed in Israeli strikes on border crossings with Lebanon just after midnight on Wednesday.

Israel has conducted hundreds of strikes on Syria in recent years, and intensified its raids since the year-long war with Hezbollah escalated in September.