Israel carried out a wave of airstrikes across Syria as its troops advanced deeper into the country, and the Israeli defence minister announced his country's forces had destroyed Syria’s navy.

The Israeli military said on Tuesday that it conducted about 480 strikes over the past 48 hours on strategic military targets in Syria, days after the ouster of president Bashar al-Assad.

"Within the last 48 hours, the IDF (army) struck most of the strategic weapons stockpiles in Syria, preventing them from falling into the hands of terrorist elements," the military said in a statement, adding that the targets included 15 naval vessels, anti-aircraft batteries and weapons production sites in several cities.

Defence officials said Israeli ships struck two Syrian naval facilities during the operation.

Israel has acknowledged pushing into a buffer zone inside Syria following the overthrow of Assad.

But it remained unclear if Israeli soldiers had gone beyond that area, which was established more than 50 years ago.

Israel denied it was advancing on the Syrian capital of Damascus.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israel intended to establish a demilitarised zone in southern Syria.

Speaking at a navy base in Haifa, Katz said the army would create a “defence zone free of weapons and terrorist threats in southern Syria, without a permanent Israeli presence, in order to prevent terrorism in Syria from taking root.” (Agencies)