US, Syria condemn Israeli strikes on Syrian airbase as escalation

Eight Israeli warplanes struck Abu al-Duhur airbase in northwestern Syria early Tuesday morning, targeting the runway and storage facilities with precision but leaving no casualties in their wake. The facility sits in Idlib province, roughly 70 kilometers from the Turkish border, and has sat largely dormant for more than a decade—though recent efforts by Syria's interim government, backed by Turkey, had begun moving to reactivate it as a training center for the country's newly formed military.

Israel has not publicly claimed responsibility for the strikes, maintaining its customary silence on such operations. But the damage was unmistakable: Syrian state media confirmed the eight separate hits and the infrastructure damage they caused. The timing matters. A Turkish military delegation had visited the airfield just before the attacks, part of a broader push to rebuild Syria's military capacity following the December 2024 ouster of Bashar Assad, whose regime fell in a swift offensive that reshaped the region's power dynamics.

The condemnation came swiftly from three directions. Tom Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkey and special presidential envoy for Syria and Iraq, posted on social media that the strikes represented an "unnecessary escalation" that undermined regional stability. He offered a careful defense of Syria's new leadership under Ahmed al-Sharaa, a figure who once held ties to Al-Qaeda-affiliated groups but has since repositioned himself away from Islamist militancy. Barrack emphasized that Sharaa's administration had repeatedly signaled a desire to de-escalate tensions with Israel, and he called on all parties to pursue dialogue rather than military action.

Syria's Foreign Ministry used sharper language, calling the strikes an "unjustified act of aggression" and appealing to the United Nations Security Council to take a firm stance against what it characterized as repeated Israeli violations of Syrian sovereignty. The statement noted that Syria had exercised restraint since Assad's fall while working to stabilize the country and avoid escalation. Turkey, a key backer of Syria's interim government, also condemned the operation and urged the international community to take decisive action against what it called Israel's escalating aggression.

The strikes fit into a larger pattern. Since Assad's ouster eight months ago, Israel has launched hundreds of operations across Syrian territory. Israeli forces have moved into a UN-patrolled buffer zone that has separated Israeli and Syrian forces in the Golan Heights since 1974, and they have conducted regular incursions deeper into Syrian territory. Israeli officials have made clear their intention to maintain what they call a "security zone" in southern Syria, a position that reflects their assessment of threats from the region.

This dynamic has created friction with Turkey, which has invested heavily in stabilizing Syria's new government and building its military and state institutions. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has directly warned Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Israel will not tolerate steps that strengthen Syria's military in ways that could pose a threat to Israeli security. The message was blunt: Turkey's efforts to rebuild Syria's armed forces run counter to Israeli strategic interests, and Israel reserves the right to prevent that buildup through military means.

What emerges is a three-way tension. Syria's interim government, backed by Turkey, is trying to consolidate power and rebuild state capacity after years of civil war. Turkey sees a stable, stronger Syria as essential to regional security and its own interests. Israel, meanwhile, views a militarily capable Syria as a potential threat and has made clear it will use force to constrain that capability. The Abu al-Duhur strikes are not an isolated incident but a statement of intent—a demonstration that Israel will continue to shape Syria's military trajectory through airpower, regardless of international objections or the preferences of Syria's new leadership.