Israel hits Syrian army HQ, near palace in Damascus; Suwayda fighting rages
Israel has struck the headquarters of the Syrian Ministry of Defence and close to the presidential palace in the capital Damascus, dramatically escalating on another military front in the region, and following through on its threats to intervene over clashes between government troops and Druze fighters in the southern Syrian city of Suwayda.
Syria’s Interior Ministry announced a ceasefire agreement for Suwayda later on Wednesday. Druze religious leader Sheikh Yousef Jarbou confirmed that, stating the truce will take immediate effect. Jarbou said the agreement was “to completely halt all military operations in Suwayda by all parties” and “to fully integrate Suwayda into the Syrian state.”
Footage showed four explosions from Israeli strikes battering the sides of the Syrian military headquarters in Damascus earlier on Wednesday, leading to large plumes of smoke rising in the sky, before another air strike hit close to the presidential palace.
Israel claims it has been carrying out the strikes in Syria to protect Syria’s Druze minority, which Israel views as a potential ally and which has been involved in clashes with Syrian government troops in Suwayda, a Druze stronghold. The community there has not welcomed Israeli intervention in the past.
Syrian state news agency SANA reported that one person was killed, and 28 others injured in the strikes, citing the Ministry of Health.
“This is a significant escalation,” she said. “This is the Israeli leadership giving a very, very direct message to Syria’s new authorities that they will intensify such strikes … if the government does not withdraw its troops from southern Syria.”
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement posted on X that the “warnings in Damascus have ended – now painful blows will come”. As Israel’s military announced it was beefing up its forces along the Syrian border, and had carried out strikes on Syrian military convoys moving south, he added that Israel’s military would “continue to operate forcefully in Suwayda to destroy the forces that attacked the Druze until their complete withdrawal”.
source: Aljazeera
