Syria's request for aid is denied by Damascus, according to Israel, which claims it has granted it

 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that he had authorized the delivery of aid to earthquake-devastated Syria, but a Damascus official quickly refuted this claim.

According to Netanyahu, Israel "received a request from a diplomatic source for humanitarian help to Syria, and I approved it," adding that the aid would soon be provided.

An official from Syria, meanwhile, said that Damascus "ridiculed and disputed the reports" that it had asked Israel for assistance.

The diplomat questioned how Syria could ask for assistance from a group that has been murdering Syrians for years.

Since Israel's founding in 1948, Syria and Israel have fought numerous conflicts and Syria's government does not recognize Israel.

The source of the request to aid Syria, where hundreds of people were murdered by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake on Monday in neighboring Turkiye, was not disclosed by Netanyahu's office.

The Israeli prime minister has also declared that Turkiye will get humanitarian aid in the wake of the catastrophe.

According to the foreign ministry of Israel, a team of search and rescue experts will depart for Turkiye on Monday, and a second mission with humanitarian relief will follow on Tuesday.