Israel launched airstrikes on Syria, sending fighter jets near the capital Damascus and dropping bombs, a message to Al-Julani?
Israeli fighter jets carried out air strikes on a city south of the Syrian capital and the southern province of Daraa late on Tuesday, February 25. News agency Reuters has given information quoting security sources and Syrian local news channel. Residents of the city told Reuters that several explosions and sounds of fighter planes flying at low altitude were heard over the Syrian capital late on Tuesday night. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has confirmed the air strike.
Will not let another southern Lebanon be created – Katz
Katz said that the attacks were carried out so that Syrian forces or other terrorist groups do not violate the IDF’s buffer zone in southern Syria. Earlier in a statement on Saturday, he had said that ‘We will not let southern Syria become southern Lebanon.’ The Air Force is currently carrying out powerful attacks in southern Syria as part of our policy to demilitarize the region. We will not endanger the safety of our citizens. Any attempt by Syrian regime forces and terrorist organizations to establish themselves in the security zone of southern Syria will be responded to with fire.’
Military site targeted in Kiswah
Syrian security sources and Syria TV said Israeli aircraft attacked the city of Kiswah, about 20 kilometers south of Damascus. During this, a military site was targeted. Reports coming from Syria suggest that two people were killed and several others were injured in the attack. The Arabic newspaper Al-Hadath reported that the air strikes targeted a group of military vehicles inside Al-Kiswah on the outskirts of Damascus.
Message to Al-Julani?
Al-Akhbar quoted the Syrian Observatory as saying that the IDF was reportedly raiding two military sites south of Damascus. This attack has been carried out just hours after Syria’s new ruler Mohammed al-Julani condemned the Israeli attack in the country and demanded the withdrawal of the areas of southern Syria. Hayat-Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)-led rebels seized the Syrian capital in December last year, toppling the Bashar al-Assad regime.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel would not tolerate the presence of HTS or any other forces affiliated with the country’s new rulers in southern Syria. He demanded the region be demilitarised.
