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The National
03-04-2025
- Politics
- The National
Syria says deadly Israeli strikes on Damascus and Hama a 'blatant violation'
Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza Syria on Thursday condemned Israeli strikes close to a defence research centre in Damascus and other sites, while a war monitor reported four casualties, after Israel said it struck "military capabilities." "In a blatant violation of international law and Syrian sovereignty, Israeli forces launched airstrikes on five locations across the country," the Syrian foreign ministry said in a statement on Telegram. "This unjustified escalation is a deliberate attempt to destabilise Syria and exacerbate the suffering of its people." It said the strikes resulted in the "near-total destruction" of a military airport in central Syrian province Hama, injuring dozens of civilians and soldiers. Syrian state media said a strike had "targeted the vicinity of the scientific research building" in Damascus's northern Barzeh neighbourhood while areas in the vicinity of Hama were also hit, without providing details on the target. The Israeli military said in a statement that forces "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". Last month, Israel said it struck the T4 military base in central Homs province twice, targeting military capabilities at the site. UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said four people had been killed while others were injured - including "Syrian defence ministry personnel, in the strikes on Hama military airport". The latest strikes on Syria come amid an expansion of Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip and days after it resumed strikes on Beirut. Provincial authorities in south Syria's Deraa on Telegram late Wednesday said that several Israeli military vehicles entered an area in the province's west, reporting that "three (Israeli) artillery shells" targeted the area. "At a time when Syria is striving to rebuild after 14 years of war, these repeated attacks form part of a clear Israeli strategy to normalise violence once again within the country," the foreign ministry statement added. The new Syrian authorities have been seeking to rebuild the country and repair relations with other countries since the collapse of the former regime under Bashar Al Assad in December. Since his fall, Israel has carried out frequent strikes which it says is aimed at ensuring weapons do not fall in the hands of the new Hayat Tahrir Al Sham-led authorities whom it considers jihadists. The Israeli military has also been sent to the UN-patrolled buffer zone in the occupied Golan Heights, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has demanded the demilitarisation of southern Syria. Last month, during a visit to Jerusalem, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said that Israeli strikes on Syria were "unnecessary" and threatened to worsen the situation.
The National
16-02-2025
- Politics
- The National
Air strike kills Al Qaeda-linked militant as Syria's new leader tours north
An aerial strike has killed a militant figure linked to Al Qaeda in the north-west governorate of Idlib, sources said on Sunday, as Syria's new Hayat Tahrir Al Sham-led government seeks to improve the country's ties with Washington. The White Helmets, a civil defence organisation, said "rescue teams pulled out the bodies and transported them to the coroner" in Idlib city, the provincial capital. There was no immediate comment from Washington. The attack late on Saturday occurred as Ahmad Al Shara, the country's new leader, was in Idlib for the first time since rebels he commands declared him President last month. Idlib was the base of HTS before it launched an offensive in late last year that led to the downfall of the Assad regime. Mr Al Shara's government on Saturday announced the arrest of what it described as an ISIS commander, accused of planning an attack on a shrine in Damascus, as it distances itself from extremist groups in the country. Videos taken by residents on the scene at a motorway near the village of Urum Al Joz in Idlib showed civil defence personnel gathering human remains from a burnt-out vehicle. Sources identified one of the dead as Abu Baker Mourek, of Hurras Al Din, a group regarded as more extreme than HTS, which had consolidated power in the area over the past decade, HTS, however, had allowed some former rivals to keep operating as allies in the struggle against former president Bashar Al Assad. In late January, US Central Command said an air strike in north-west Syria had killed Muhammad Salah Al Zabir, who it described as 'a senior operative in the terrorist organisation Hurras Al Din'. Despite continuing military operations in Syria, the US Defence Department has drawn plans to pull its troops from the country, US media reported last week, citing unnamed officials. President Donald Trump has indicated his preference for a withdrawal from Syria, although he backed down from such a step during his first term from 2017 to 2021. A report by the Foundation of the Defence of Democracies last month described Hurras Al Din as Al Qaeda's official branch in Syria. It said the organisation of about 2,500 members was formed by commanders who had broken off from HTS in 2018. HTS severed itself from Al Qaeda in 2014, when Mr Al Shara began a process of power consolidation that helped him overthrow the Assad regime on December 8 last year. Relations with extremists and foreign fighters in particular has become an obstacle in talks between Mr Al Shara and western countries. Two senior US officials met Mr Al Shara in Damascus last month. They relayed concerns about his inclusion of foreign fighters in Syria's new security force. A source told The National that Mr Al Shara said their integration was necessary to preserve stability. How to deal with extremists was also the object of discussions on a visit last week by Anas Al Khattab, the new intelligence chief, and French officials, Syrian sources said.
