Israel Strikes Syria Following Sectarian Conflicts

Israel launched a series of airstrikes on Syria over the weekend in what it called a “clear message” against threats to Syria’s Druze minority following skirmishes between Druze factions and pro-government forces that raised fears of renewed sectarian violence, France 24 reported.

The strikes – which targeted military installations and were described by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights as the most extensive this year – hit at least 20 locations across the country.

Syria’s official news agency SANA said four people were injured in the west-central city of Hama and the port city of Latakia, and two civilians were killed elsewhere.

Israeli military officials confirmed that warplanes had struck near the interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s palace in the capital, Damascus.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a joint statement that Israel “will not allow forces to be sent south of Damascus or any threat to the Druze community.”

Army officials later announced that Israeli forces in southern Syria were “prepared to prevent the entry of hostile forces into Druze villages.”

The Syrian presidency condemned the Israeli strikes as a “dangerous escalation against state institutions,” while United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres criticized them as violations of Syria’s sovereignty.

The responses of other countries were mixed: Qatar and Saudi Arabia condemned Israel’s “aggression,” while Germany warned that “Syria must not become the venue for regional tensions.”

The weekend strikes followed deadly clashes between the Druze and Syrian government forces in the southern Sweida province and the suburbs of Damascus last week. The violence began after an audio recording circulated on social media of a man insulting Islam’s Prophet Mohammad, the Associated Press wrote.

The voice was alleged to belong to Druze cleric Marwan Kiwan, but he issued a statement that he was not responsible.

More than 100 people were killed in the fighting.

In Damascus and other affected regions, Syrian authorities accused “outlaw groups” of fomenting violence and sectarian hatred. However, the Observatory and residents countered that government-allied forces attacked the Damascus suburbs and clashed with Druze gunmen.

On Friday, Druze factions reaffirmed their loyalty to Damascus and agreed to surrender their heavy weapons as part of a de-escalation deal with the government.

Some members of the Druze community would prefer that kind of internal resolution to Israel’s intervention, according to Al Jazeera. They claimed that “the Israeli prime minister is using this to put pressure on Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and attack targets in Syria.”

The Israeli military continues to occupy parts of Syria, including the Golan Heights, and has been launching attacks on various military sites across the country since the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and its allies toppled former President Bashar Assad in late 2024.