Israeli fighter jets have struck a military facility in western Syria, killing two people, according to a Syrian commander quoted by the state-run news agency SANA.

The site in Hama province, 46km north of Homs, is believed to have been damaged in Thursday’s attack.

The air strike was carried out from Lebanese airspace and two people were killed at the site, SANA said, adding that it would embolden “terrorists” in Syria fighting the government.

An Israeli army spokesperson declined to discuss reports of the air strike, saying the army did not comment on operational matters.

“Israeli warplanes at 2:42am today fired a number of missiles from Lebanese air space, targeting one of our military positions near Masyaf, which led to material damage and the deaths of two members of the site,” the Syrian army said in a statement.

Masyaf is a town in western Syria, approximately 60km east of the coastal city of Tartus, where Russia maintains a naval base.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said the site targeted by Israel is home to a research centre sanctioned by the US as part of Syria’s non-conventional weapons agency.

An AFP news agency report said Syria’s army operates a military facility north of Masyaf that includes a training camp and a branch of the Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC).

The US has accused the SSRC of developing the sarin gas weapon allegedly used in a chemical attack on the Syrian town of Khan Sheikhoun in April, which left dozens dead.

On Wednesday, UN war crimes investigators announced they had an “extensive body of information” indicating Syrian warplanes were behind the attack.

Syria’s army did not mention the SSRC in its statement. The government has rejected accusations of chemical weapons use in Khan Sheikhoun as “fabrications”.