Israeli airstrikes targeting the Abu al-Duhur military airbase in north-western Syria represent an "unnecessary escalation" that fails to advance regional stability, according to the US special presidential envoy for Syria and Iraq. Writing in a post on X on Tuesday, Ambassador Tom Barrack said the United States remained deeply concerned by the strikes, adding that Washington was urging all involved parties to prioritise "logical discourse" over further military incidents. The strikes on the airbase in northwest Syria early Tuesday caused material damage without inflicting any casualties, Syrian state TV reported.
State TV said eight strikes hit the runway of the Abu Duhur airbase in the northwestern province of Idlib. It gave no further details. There was no comment from the Israeli military on the attack.
Turkish officials also did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said foreign fighters used to stay at the base before they were recently asked to leave. The Observatory added that Turkey, which is a main backer of Syria’s government, has been rehabilitating the air base that had been out of service for years during Syria’s conflict that left nearly half a million people dead.
Since the fall of Bashar Assad’s government in December 2024 when insurgents marched into his seat of power in Damascus, tensions between Israel and Turkey over Syria have been on the rise. Israel carried out hundreds of airstrikes around Syria after Assad’s fall, mainly destroying assets of the Syrian army to keep them out of the hands of his successors. Israeli drone strikes on a southern suburb of Damascus last year killed eight soldiers and wounded others.
The new authorities in Damascus have said they do not want a conflict with Israel, but Israel has remained suspicious of the government led by former Islamist insurgents. Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
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