Syria, US say Israel struck military air base in Idlib province
Syria and the U.S. condemned the strikes on the Abu Duhur air base, with Washington calling them an unnecessary escalation.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Israel carried out airstrikes on a disused military air base in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province early Tuesday, Syrian and US officials said, in an attack that Damascus condemned as an “unjustified act of aggression” and Washington described as an unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability.
The Israeli strikes targeted the Abu Duhur air base, which has been out of service since 2012. Syrian state media, citing a military source, said Israeli aircraft struck the runway with eight strikes, damaging infrastructure but causing no casualties.
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attack.
The strikes came amid heightened tensions surrounding Israel’s military activity in Syria and growing strain between Israel and Türkiye, a key ally of Syria’s new authorities.
Speaking at a joint press conference with International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi at Tishreen Palace in Damascus, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani condemned the Israeli attack on Abu Duhur airport.
“We condemn the Israeli aggression against Abu Duhur Airport, which constitutes an unjustified provocation, a violation of Syria’s sovereignty and a direct threat to regional and global stability,” al-Shaibani said.
He also reaffirmed Syria’s sovereignty and its longstanding position calling for an immediate halt to Israeli violations and attacks.
“We renew our confirmation of Syria’s sovereignty and its firm position calling for the immediate cessation of Israeli violations and attacks,” al-Shaibani said.
The Syrian foreign ministry had earlier condemned “in the strongest terms the Israeli airstrikes” targeting the base, describing them as “an unjustified act of aggression.”
The ministry called on the international community and the United Nations Security Council to “take a firm position against Israel’s repeated violations of Syrian sovereignty.”
It also said the continuation of Israeli attacks since December 2024 had come while Syria “has exercised restraint and worked to consolidate stability and avoid escalation.”
US envoy for Syria Tom Barrack said on X that the “confirmed Israeli airstrikes” on the Abu Duhur air base “constitute an unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability.”
Barrack, who is also US ambassador to Türkiye, urged the parties involved to avoid further military incidents.
“We encourage all parties to prioritise logical discourse over further military incidents,” he said.
The US response came as Syria and Israel continue to face unresolved tensions despite several rounds of direct talks between Israel and Syria’s new authorities.
The two sides have also agreed to establish an intelligence-sharing mechanism, according to the information provided.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strikes followed a visit by a Turkish military delegation to the airfield in recent days as part of efforts to reactivate the facility.
Türkiye is a key ally of Syria’s new authorities, while relations between Israel and Türkiye have come under increasing strain in recent years, particularly following Israel’s war in Gaza and Israeli military operations in Syria.
The relationship between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also deteriorated.
A billboard for Netanyahu’s Likud party ahead of Israel’s October elections recently pictured Erdogan alongside figures including Naim Qassem, head of Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.
Israel has launched hundreds of strikes on Syria since the December 2024 toppling of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad by Islamist forces whom Israel considers jihadists.
Israel has also sent troops into a United Nations-patrolled buffer zone that had separated Israeli and Syrian forces in the Israeli-occupied Golan since 1974, while carrying out regular incursions deeper into Syrian territory.
Israeli officials have said they intend to maintain forces in a “security zone” in southern Syria, where they are seeking a broader demilitarised zone.
Last week, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israel planned to keep troops in Syria.
The continued Israeli military presence has remained a major point of tension between the two sides.
Last month, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani condemned “the continuation of Israeli military actions” and warned that “the unlawful occupation of our land beyond the 1974 line is a direct threat to the security of the region.”
He demanded an “immediate and unconditional withdrawal.”
The latest strikes come amid continued international concern over Syria’s territorial integrity.
During a visit to Damascus last month, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that “violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity are unacceptable and must cease,” while also stating that “the Golan Heights are Syrian territory.”
Israel captured most of the Golan from Syria in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War and later annexed the areas under its control, a move not recognised by most of the international community.
The latest Israeli strikes on Abu Duhur add another point of tension to an already fragile relationship between Israel and Syria, as Damascus reiterates its demand for an end to Israeli violations and Washington urges the parties to avoid further military escalation.