The Syrian Foreign Ministry on Thursday condemned Israeli airstrikes in Syria overnight that reportedly struck several key sites.
Damascus residents said the Barzeh Scientific Research Center had been struck, and locals in Hama said strikes hit the military airport. A strike also was reported near the T-4 base near Palmyra.
“Israeli forces struck five areas in 30 minutes, destroying Hama military airport and injuring civilians and military personnel,” Levant24, an independent Syrian news site, reported.
The IDF said overnight: “In the past hours, the IDF struck military capabilities that remained at the Syrian bases of Hama and T4, along with additional remaining military infrastructure sites in the area of Damascus.”
The Syrian Foreign Ministry said the attacks were intended to destabilize Syria and prolong its suffering. Syria is trying to recover after 14 years of civil war and is calling on the international community to pressure Israel to stop the strikes and adhere to international law, it said.
Earlier this week, Syria inaugurated a new transition government with more than 20 cabinet ministers.
The Syrian Foreign Ministry said it “strongly condemned the latest wave of Israeli aggression against Syria [and was] urging the international community to take a firm stance and pressure Israel to stop its aggression and adhere to international law,” Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), a state-owned news agency, reported.
In a statement published on its Telegram channel, the Foreign Ministry said: “In a blatant violation of international law and Syrian sovereignty, Israeli forces launched airstrikes on five locations across the country within 30 minutes, resulting in the near-total destruction of Hama Military Airport and injuring dozens of civilians and military personnel. This unjustified escalation is a deliberate attempt to destabilize Syria and exacerbate the suffering of its people.”
The Syrian Foreign Ministry said the Israeli attacks “form part of a clear Israeli strategy to normalize violence once again within the country, undermining recovery efforts and entrenching a culture of impunity,” SANA reported. “The Syrian Arab Republic calls on the international community to take a firm stance and exert pressure on Israel to cease its aggression, respect international law, and uphold its commitments under the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement. We also urge the United Nations and all relevant international bodies to take immediate action to halt this escalation and prevent further violations.”
This is an important development that shows Syria is trying to rally support. Most countries in the region oppose Israel’s airstrikes on Syria. Jordan, Turkey, and other countries have condemned the strikes in the past.
Israel has carried out dozens of airstrikes in Syria since the Assad regime fell last December 8. Initially, these were viewed as strikes aimed at removing threats left behind as the Assad regime fell, such as naval vessels, warplanes, or chemical-weapons facilities.
The strikes have continued for four months, however, and it is not clear what Israel might have missed in the first large waves of strikes on December 8.
Some of the strikes have targeted military airports that Turkey and other countries reportedly would like to use. Turkey is a partner of the new government in Damascus.
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has tried to show he is reaching out to more countries than just Turkey and Qatar, which are close allies. He visited Saudi Arabia after assuming power and has also travelled to Cairo.
Sharaa is trying to balance the interests of many countries in Syria. In addition, the US plays a role in Syria.
The importance of Tasil
The IAF airstrikes overnight on April 2-3 came as the IDF and Syrian forces clashed in Tasil, southern Syria, in an area near Dara’a and the Jordanian border.
Another clash took place on March 25, when several Syrians were killed in clashes with the IDF in Koya (Kuwaya), which is on the Jordanian border, less than two kilometers from the Golan Heights buffer zone the IDF controls. This is a triangle of land in what is known as the Yarmouk River basin.
Tasil is above the basin and is an important town. During the Syrian civil war, it changed hands several times. An ISIS affiliate, Jaysh Khalid, ran it from 2016-2017. It was pushed out by Syrian rebels in 2017 but continued to control areas near the Golan border.
Tasil had a strategic site near it called Tel al-Jamu, which apparently was a Syrian regime site. Rebels had tried to take it early in the rebellion in 2011-2012. The Syrian regime had brutally killed Syrians in the town.
In 2018, the whole area in Dara’a and near the Golan fell to the Syrian regime, as the rebels were defeated near the Israeli border. Last December 8, things changed again as the rebels seized power.
Israel once had positive ties with the Syrian rebels near the Golan. Israel even facilitated the evacuation of the White Helmets from Syria in 2018, when the regime took over areas near the Golan.
Now, things have changed. Israel has pushed into the buffer zone along the Golan, and clashes have taken place in areas near the border.