In brief
The escalation in airstrikes comes as Israel aims to prevent military resources from reaching rebel factions following the recent power shift in Syria.
Israel launched a series of significant airstrikes on Syria’s coastal area overnight, targeting former Syrian Army locations, as reported by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The strikes come in the wake of rebels seizing control of significant territory from the Assad regime earlier this month.According to the Observatory, the airstrikes targeted vital military infrastructure, including air defense systems and missile storage facilities. Additionally, an earlier strike targeted radar installations at Deir al-Zour's military airport.The scale of the attacks is said to be unprecedented since 2012, with a total of 18 airstrikes reported, which included consecutive detonations of missiles in armament warehouses. Such powerful strikes typically result in secondary explosions, amplifying the impact. While there have been no reports of casualties yet, the Israeli military has not issued any comments on these operations.Israel has frequently conducted strikes in Syria – more than 450 times since the ousting of Assad’s government, according to the Observatory. The Israeli military maintains that these operations are vital to prevent advanced weaponry from reaching extremist groups.Last Sunday, the Israeli government approved a plan to significantly expand settlements in the occupied Golan Heights, a development linked to the current geopolitical shifts in Syria post-Assad. This expansion, a part of an $11 million initiative, aims to double the local population in response to perceived new threats on Israel's borders.Ahmed al-Shara, the leader of the rebel coalition now governing Syria, criticized Israel for using pretexts to justify its territorial expansion, emphasizing that Syria is more focused on rebuilding and achieving stability rather than engaging in new conflicts."Syria’s war-weary condition, after years of conflict and war, does not allow for new confrontations," al-Shara asserted, stressing the need for reconstruction and diplomatic resolutions rather than further devastation.
