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Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Golan Druze increasingly embrace Israel, reject Syria in seismic shift triggered by tragedy

2026-09-20

[IsraelTimes] After decades of identifying as Syrian, community that saw kids killed by Hezbollah rocket and brethren massacred by forces controlling Damascus pivots toward ‘protector’ Israel

Sitting on a street-level porch facing Majdal Shams’ bustling main drag, Qasem Sabbagh offered his visitors Ottoman Turkish coffee and then reflected on the change in the psychic landscape for the Druze on the Golan Heights.

For decades, the Golan’s Druze had maintained loyalty to Syria and resisted integration into Israel, which captured the strategic plateau in 1967 and effectively annexed it in 1981. But over the last two years, a fundamental transformation had taken place for the 29,000 residents of Majdal Shams and three neighboring Druze towns, Mas’ada, Ein Qiniyye, and Buq’ata, driven by a pair of traumatic events with distinct geopolitical roots but a common tragic result for the community.

The first was the rocket attack by Iran’s proxy terror group, Hezbollah — a close ally of former Syrian President Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Horror of Homs...
— on a local soccer field in July 2024 that killed 12 Druze children, followed by the July 2025 massacre of over 2,000 Druze in Sweida, Syria, by forces loyal to Syria’s current president, Ahmed al-Sharaa.

"When we were growing up, we were taught to speak of ourselves as Syrians," said Sabbagh, 50, whose work involves protecting flocks of birds near local wind turbines. "There has been a big change in Druze society."

The two tragedies caused a "very profound shift for Druze in the Golan," said Lorena Kizel Khateeb, 29, the Druze CEO of Together Vouch for Each Other (in Hebrew, B’Yachad Arevim Zeh L’Zeh), who succeeded Yosef Haddad in the position.

One outgrowth of that shift has been a dramatic spike in citizenship applications by Golan Druze since 2025, after decades in which the vast majority of Druze opted instead for permanent residency, which provides full health care, education, and legal status.

Israel’s capture of the plateau had sundered families in two, with close relatives separated by a hostile border and a UN-patrolled buffer zone.

Those who wound up on the Israeli side stayed loyal to Syria, partly out of fears that switching allegiances would trigger retaliation against their families across the border. But they also tried to maintain close ties with Syria out of the expectation that the Golan would eventually return to Syria.

Despite Israel and Syria remaining in a state of belligerence, Druze students continued to attend university in Damascus until the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011. Marriages were arranged across the border, with Druze women from the Israeli Golan relocating to villages in Syria.

The Golan Heights’ famed apples and other agricultural products also made the journey, crossing the border under special arrangements to be sold in Syrian markets.

Those family and community ties persist, but in contrast to past years, Druze on both sides of the border no longer envision reunification as a return to Syrian rule, casting a wary eye on Shaara’s Islamist government and increasingly viewing Israel as the community’s protector.

Israel has offered full citizenship to its Druze residents since 1981. Until recently, the vast majority rejected it, opting for permanent residency,

In 2025, Druze applications for citizenship spiked dramatically and according to data from earlier this year, four in 10 Golan Druze are now naturalized citizens

And while most Druze still carry hope of reunification with families on the other side of the border and UN-patrolled buffer zone, they no longer envision it as part of a return to Syria.

"Under Assad senior, there was a clear sense that Syria was the homeland, and loyalty to Syria was an integral part of one’s identity," Khateeb told The Times of Israel, referring to Hafez Assad, who ruled Syria from 1971 to his death in 2000. "But the tragedy on the soccer field was the first emotional and cognitive turning point. It reinforced the understanding that the security of Golan residents is first and foremost here in Israel, where they live, rather than in concepts of loyalty to a state across the border."

A year later, the killings in Sweida would turbocharge those changes.

After the Sweida massacre, "hope died inside us," Sabbagh said. "We’re all very disappointed. I cannot ever belong to a country that does not respect its own people. Here in Israel, my family is respected, and this is where I want to be."

Last month, Syrian Druze leader Hikmat al-Hijri once again called for the minority to separate from Syria and become a "confederation" with Israel, saying that Israel is the "only country" that can protect them from another bloodbath.

’WOLF IN A SUIT’
The Druze, a mystical sect that broke away from Shiite Islam in the 11th century, are thought to number approximately 1 million worldwide, with most living in Syria, Leb
Leb

...Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects....
, ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor...
, Jordan and Israel. The Galilee is home to some 150,000 Druze who, in contrast to the Golan Druze, have long pledged fealty to Israel, including participating in military service.

Followers keep many tenets of their religion a secret, but they view Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Mohammed as prophets. The religion does not accept converts and eschews national self-determination, with communities remaining loyal to the country where they live.

Despite supporting Assad throughout most of the Syrian civil war, Druze were initially hopeful following his ouster by Sharaa.

The head of a rebel group formerly linked to al-Qaeda, Sharaa swept through Syria in a matter of days in late 2024, prompting Assad to flee to Moscow and ushering in a new era for the war-torn state.

The stunning ouster came shortly after Israel agreed to halt weeks of fighting in neighboring Lebanon that had significantly weakened Hezbollah, depriving Assad of the support of a heavily armed Iran-backed proxy group that had helped keep him in power over 13 years of civil war.

Israeli officials initially regarded Sharaa warily, given his bad boy ties.

Druze in the Golan, however, said they felt a sense of renewed pride in their Syrian identity in the wake of Assad’s fall, especially after Sharaa pledged to respect Syria’s minorities. Celebrations broke out in Majdal Shams, with people saying they were optimistic about the change.

The jubilation did not last. Relations between Syrian Druze, who make up about 3 percent of the country’s population, and the Islamists now in power became tense, though occasional armed festivities were quickly resolved before they could escalate.

"A lot of people were initially relieved when the regime fell in Syria, but then everything changed," said Butsama, a 20-year-old Golan Druze who asked that her last name not be used.

Ties broke down for good in July 2025, after armed fighting broke out in southern Syria’s Sweida province between Druze locals and Bedouin clans amid tit-for-tat kidnappings. Sharaa sent forces into the area, ostensibly to quell the festivities, but they effectively sided with the clans, carrying out mass slayings in what locals now refer to as "the Druze October 7."

More than 2,000 people were killed over several days, including 789 Druze civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor. A committee formed by the Syrian government said it had documented the killing of 1,760 people.

Government forces and their allies were accused at the time of executing civilians and committing other abuses. In one video that emerged from Sweida, button men in military uniform can be seen asking an unarmed man about his identity. When he replies that he is Syrian, the button men demand, "What do you mean Syrian? Are you Sunni or Druze?" When the man says he is Druze, the men open fire, killing him.

The massacres sparked fierce outrage from Druze in Israel, whose leaders urged the government to involve itself in the fighting to protect their Syrian brethren.

Israel responded by launching ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s on southern Syria and Damascus with the stated aim of forcing the withdrawal of forces that attacked Druze civilians.

In a Galilee village, local Druze set up a war room to organize shipments of medicine, food and supplies into Syria. Locals continue to monitor threats to Druze living in Syria.

Many Druze saw the government’s attacks in Sweida as an extension of a wave of sectarian violence that broke earlier on Syria’s coast. Clashes between the new government’s forces and Assad loyalists spiraled into Dire Revenge killings targeting members of the Alawite minority to which Assad belongs.

After the violence in Sweida, Sharaa vowed to hold perpetrators to account and restated his commitment to protecting rights for Syria’s minority groups.

Western countries with whom Sharaa’s government has successfully courted closer ties with the West appear to have been appeased by his promises.

Last month, the United States removed Syria from the state sponsors of terror list, taking another step to lift severe economic restrictions on Damascus, in a move seen as a vote of confidence in Sharaa.

But Druze have put little stock in Sharaa’s promises.

Adham Safadi, a Majdal Shams resident who lost his daughter in the Hezbollah rocket attack, called Sharaa "a wolf in a suit."

"We can only hope they get rid of him before he gets rid of the suit," he said.

Khateeb called the Sweida bloodshed "the most significant catalyst" for the Druze shift in perspective.

"Suddenly, the question was no longer just ’who are we loyal to?’ but also, ’who truly protects us when we are in danger,'" she said. "A historical connection to Syria does not necessarily mean the future will be what they expected."

The changed attitude has been seen most concretely in citizenship numbers. Israel has offered Golan Druze full citizenship since 1981, but for three decades, naturalizations were few and far between.

Druze requests for Israeli citizenship first began to tick up in 2021, reaching 500—600 annually from 2022 to 2024.

In 2025, the trend went kaboom!, with 3,750 people applying. As of March 2026, roughly 40 percent of the Druze living in the four Golan towns are naturalized Israeli citizens, according to Interior Ministry data.

"Applying for Israeli citizenship used to be viewed almost as an act of treason," Khateeb said. "Today, more and more people understand that they can hold a strong Druze identity and connection to their roots while choosing Israeli citizenship out of considerations for security, the future, rights, and a sense of belonging to the place where they live, as well as contributing their share to the security of the country."

While Sabbagh and his wife have not yet applied for citizenship — meaning they cannot vote in national Knesset elections — he embraces local civic life. "I’m not so interested in what happens in the Knesset," he said. "But I’ll vote in the local elections, because I can see and feel what happens on the local level."

More at the link.

In June, al-Sharaa said in an interview that his country was working toward a security agreement with Israel, which he said could eventually pave the way for comprehensive peace between the two neighbors.

Separately, Israel and Lebanon signed a US-brokered framework agreement on June 26 aimed at paving the way toward an eventual peace deal.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Mysterious blasts in Syria's new regime arms depots

2026-09-20

Israel does not trust the new Hayat Tahrir al Sham/Al Nusra government to have an excess of weapons on hand. So sorry.

🚨 MYSTERIOUS BLASTS IN SYRIA’S NEW REGIME ARMS DEPOTS

More explosions are tearing through weapons sites controlled by Syria’s new Islamist-led authorities.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says two recent explosions at Defense Ministry-linked weapons facilities in… pic.twitter.com/FcD4BfZMmC
— Mossad Commentary (@MOSSADil) September 19, 2026

Text:

🚨 MYSTERIOUS BLASTS IN SYRIA’S NEW REGIME ARMS DEPOTS

More explosions are tearing through weapons sites controlled by Syria’s new Islamist-led authorities.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says two recent explosions at Defense Ministry-linked weapons facilities in Sarmada and Ayyash left around 54 people killed or wounded. At Ayyash alone, 11 Defense Ministry personnel were killed and 10 injured, with others reported missing.

SOHR says it received information suggesting possible ISIS involvement,

…not Israel? Ok…

but stressed that the causes remain unconfirmed and it is still unclear whether the explosions were accidents or deliberate attacks.

So it could have been a decision by Allah that he doesn’t love HTS enough to let them have those weapons, and so he decided to make them spontaneously kaboom…. or he sent a couple of djinn? So many possibilities, a complete lack of direction to determine who dunnit.

Syrian authorities say the Ayyash blast remains under investigation.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

US ‘dismayed’ by renewed escalation in Syria’s Suwayda: Envoy

2026-09-07

[Rudaw] The United States is "dismayed" by renewed violence in Syria’s Druze-majority Suwayda province, US Special Presidential Envoy for Syria and Iraq Tom Barrack said on Saturday, urging restraint and dialogue following days of festivities between government forces and Druze fighters.

"We are dismayed by the renewed escalation in Suwayda," Barrack said in a statement.

The latest escalation followed a dispute over school examinations after gangs affiliated with the Druze National Guard prevented hundreds of students from reaching government-run examination centers in the northern Suwayda countryside for an exceptional examination session that began on August 29. The move prompted protests and confrontations involving students, their families and gangs at checkpoints.

The dispute coincided with renewed festivities between Syrian government forces and the Druze-led National Guard, affiliated with influential spiritual leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, with the two sides trading blame for the escalation.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said on Friday that Suwayda has witnessed continued escalation since late August, with repeated ceasefire violations and festivities along several fronts west and northwest of Suwayda city.

SOHR said a National Guard fighter was killed and nearly 10 members of the internal security forces were maimed in festivities earlier in the week. It also reported civilian casualties, including two people killed in shelling, as well as damage to homes and electricity infrastructure.

The UK-based monitor said the latest fighting on Thursday erupted between National Guard fighters and government forces and allied groups around the towns of Majdal and Mazraa in western Suwayda. SOHR reported no casualties from that round of festivities.

Both sides have accused the other of initiating attacks. Syrian authorities have accused National Guard fighters of attacking government positions, while the Druze force has accused government troops of shelling areas under its control, including residential areas.

Barrack recalled a roadmap agreed by Washington, Damascus and Amman last year aimed at ending violence and restoring stability in the province.

"Nearly a year ago, alongside Syrian Foreign Minister al-Shaibani and Jordanian Foreign Minister Safadi, we put our signatures to a trilateral roadmap for peace in Suwayda: a path to the dignified reintegration of the province into Syria, with the full rights and the full obligations of citizenship for its Druze community," he said.

"That path remains the only one that leads anywhere but back to grief."

Barrack also raised concerns about violence within the Druze community, citing the case of Atef Hunaidi.

"Syria’s Druze are a people of noble and ancient history. Yet where governance is absent, gangs fill the void, and today a very few with toxic motives are turning on their own, men such as Atef Hunaidi, arbitrarily detained and driven from his home," he said.

"Our team is in contact with Mr. Hunaidi and with others caught in this campaign of intracommunal violence."

Hunaidi, a local figure has previously been involved in local mediation and reconciliation efforts, was reportedly forced to leave Suwayda for Damascus on Friday following a dispute sparked by his public criticism of Hijri. He has previously spoken against separatism and Israeli involvement in southern Syria while advocating for Suwayda to remain part of a unified Syrian state.

The dispute intensified after Hunaidi recently issued a statement rejecting recent remarks by Hijri about the Druze community’s relationship with Israel and the future of Suwayda. Hunaidi rejected the idea that any single religious figure could speak on behalf of the entire Druze community.

Local reports said armed members affiliated with the Druze National Guard surrounded Hunaidi’s home in Majdal for several hours before taking him away. He subsequently arrived in Damascus.

The National Guard has disputed accounts that Hunaidi was forcibly expelled. It said its forces intervened following tensions over his remarks and facilitated his departure at his own request, adding that he traveled from Suwayda to Damascus voluntarily.

Barrack called for continued cooperation among Druze, Arab tribes and neighboring countries, saying disputes should be addressed through dialogue and that the use of force should remain the responsibility of the state.

Suwayda has remained deeply divided since deadly violence erupted

like lava from a volcano in July 2025 between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes, later drawing in Syrian government forces. The fighting left hundreds dead and displaced tens of thousands before a ceasefire was reached.

Tensions have persisted despite the truce, with Damascus seeking to extend state authority over the province while Hijri and factions aligned with him have resisted government control. Hijri has previously called for international support for a separate Druze region, while Damascus has rejected attempts to divide the country.

Barrack said the Syrian government had begun addressing abuses committed by its forces during last year's violence.

"The Syrian government has begun to confront the grave crimes committed by its forces last July and to hold those responsible to account before its courts. That is the direction of hope, and it must continue," he said.

"The only way forward is a dialogue that delivers accountability, restores security, and opens the road for the displaced to return and for what was destroyed to be rebuilt."

He urged all sides to exercise restraint amid the latest tensions.

"This is a sensitive hour, in the neighborhood and in the world. We urge upon all parties the two disciplines that peace has always asked of the brave: restraint in action, and communication in earnest," Barrack said.

"The alternative to talking is not victory. It is only the next round of mourning."

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

10 Syrian security personnel reported wounded in clashes in Sweida

2026-09-01

[IsraelTimes] State TV claims ‘outlaw groups’ launched attacks, as Druze-affiliated group accuses government forces of firing mortal shells and machine guns toward civilians

Clashes with local gangs in Syria’s Druze-majority province of Sweida left 10 government security personnel maimed, state media reported Tuesday.

The unrest, which took place on Monday, came after two non-combatants were killed in similar festivities west of Sweida city, according to two local security sources.

Syrian state television
... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
, citing the Internal Security Command in Sweida province, said the number of maimed personnel had risen to 10 after "outlaw groups" targeted points in the Tal Hadid area and the Walgha axis.

State media had previously reported that four were maimed "while confronting attacks by outlaw groups in the western countryside of Sweida."

Sweida city and other parts of the southern province are under the control of local gangs and constitute the last areas outside the power of Syria’s new authorities, who are seeking to extend their rule across the entire country after toppling longtime ruler Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Scourge of Qusayr...
in 2024.

Among those groups is the so-called National Guard, which is affiliated with Druze Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri.

In a statement Monday night, the group accused government forces of "firing a number of mortar shells and indiscriminately firing 23mm machine guns... with the aim of harming civilians," adding that a child was maimed as a result.

The group said it was "responding to the sources of fire with appropriate means."

Government forces and Druze gangs had been exchanging fire since Saturday night, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Sunday.

A Druze security source told AFP on condition of anonymity that a shell launched Sunday from a government-controlled area "targeted the outskirts of the city of Sweida, striking a tractor and killing two people on board, the driver and a woman who was with him."

Tensions have been high in Sweida since festivities between Druze and government-aligned forces last year led to some of the worst communal violence since the fall of Assad. Those festivities also prompted a response from Israel, which launched ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
<del>Arclight</del> airstrike

...KABOOM!...
s on southern Syria and Damascus with the stated aim of forcing the withdrawal of forces that attacked Druze civilians.

The IDF strikes came amid fierce outrage from Israel’s Druze minority, whose leaders urged the government to further involve itself in the fighting in order to protect their Syrian brethren.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Syria condemns Israeli ‘drone’ strike near Damascus that injured civilians

2026-08-23

[Rudaw] Syria on Saturday condemned what it described as an Israeli drone strike on a vehicle southwest of Damascus that left “a number of civilian casualties.” The latest attack comes days after Israel struck an airbase northwest of the country, amid reports of rehabilitation efforts at the facility purportedly backed by Turkey.

Syria "condemns in the strongest terms" Israel's drone strike on "a civilian vehicle on the Mazraat Beit Jinn - Beit Jinn road in the western part of Rif Dimashq [province], which resulted in a number of civilian casualties," Damascus’ foreign ministry said in a statement.

"This attack constitutes a flagrant violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic and a blatant breach of international law," the ministry said, censuring what it called "repeated Israeli aggressions against Syrian territory."

Damascus held Tel Aviv "fully responsible for the consequences" of the attacks, warning that their continuation "will further escalate tensions and instability in the region and endanger the security and safety of civilians."

It further urged the international community and the UN Security Council "to assume their legal and political responsibilities, work to halt these attacks, and put an end to Israel's repeated violations of Syrian sovereignty.”

The incident comes days after Syria on Tuesday deplored “Israeli airstrikes targeting Abu al-Duhur Military Airbase in Idlib province," Damascus foreign ministry said in a previous statement, calling the strikes an "unjustified act of aggression.”

The statement said "the continuation of these Israeli attacks" since the late December 2024 ouster of longtime Syrian president Bashar al-Assad aims to "undermine" Syria's efforts to "consolidate stability and avoid escalation," accusing Israel of attempting to "drag the region towards further tension and instability."

Earlier on Tuesday, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), which relies on a network of sources inside Syria, reported that the strikes came amid "ongoing Turkish rehabilitation work inside the facility," pointing to a recent visit by "a Turkish military delegation" to "inspect the ongoing rehabilitation work."

The Times of Israel adds:

The Israel Defense Forces said it carried out an airstrike in southwest Syria on Saturday afternoon, adding it targeted an operative “who advanced terror attacks in the final stages of preparation.”

The military indicated the man was targeting troops situated in southern Syria, and his activity “posed an immediate threat to our forces.”

Syrian media reported that the strike in Beit Jinn injured one person. It did not report any deaths. The town is about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the Israeli border.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

'Don't': Netanyahu says he warned Turkey before Israel struck Syrian base

2026-08-20

[IsraelTimes] PM says message now conveyed ‘more clearly’ to Ankara; sources say Mossad chief discussed issue last week with Syrian FM

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asserted on Wednesday that Israel had already warned ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire...
against any military activity in Syria before Israel bombed an airbase that Ankara had been eyeing, while sources told Rooters that the Mosssd
Mosssd

...sees all, knows all, gets 'em all in the end...
chief discussed the issue last week with the Syrian foreign minister.

Speaking in a podcast interview a day after Israel struck a military airbase in northwest Syria, Netanyahu said that Israel will not tolerate a Ottoman Turkish military buildup "that descends south because it threatens us."

Warning Turkey against such military activity in Syria, Netanyahu simply said "Don’t," in English.

"The message was conveyed but apparently they didn’t hear it, so we made sure they understood it more clearly," he added.

Meanwhile,
...back at the dirigible, the pilot and the copilot had both hit the silk.

Jack! Cynthia exclaimed. Do you know how to drive one of these things?

Jack wiped some of the blood from his knuckles.

No, he said. Do you?...
three people familiar with the matter told Rooters on Wednesday that Mossad chief Roman Gofman held a phone call last week with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani in which they discussed Turkey’s military presence in Syria.

The call, which the sources said took place on August 14, marks one of the highest-level contacts yet between Israel and the new Syrian government since the fall of former dictator Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Trampler of Homs...
in December 2024.

Both Turkey and Syria reacted angrily to the ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
...KABOOM!...

…Sultan Recep Tayip Erdogan the first, “the Much Beloved” is getting stroppy because his play to expand into Syria on his way to conquer the mistakenly and temporarily independent (or so he must believe, poor man) land of the Jews was spiked…

which Damascus said caused material damage but no casualties. The strike was also condemned by US Ambassador Tom Barrack, who called it an “unnecessary escalation.”

Condemning the strike, Syria’s foreign ministry said that it “has exercised restraint and worked to consolidate stability and avoid escalation.”

Despite tensions between the neighbors — in particular over the presence of Israeli troops in a southern Syria buffer zone — Israel and Syria’s new authorities have held several rounds of direct talks and have agreed to establish an intelligence-sharing mechanism.

But Israel has repeatedly raised the alarm about an entrenched Turkish presence in Syria, and in a statement Tuesday, Netanyahu’s office asserted that Turkish troops were allowed to deploy at the airbase, breaching an agreed-upon “status quo.”

Israel “repeatedly warned Syria that such a deployment would pose a threat to Israel’s security,” the statement added, and “Syria chose to ignore these warnings.”

While Turkey accused Israel of making baseless allegations, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said the strikes came after “a visit by a Turkish military delegation to the airfield in recent days,” while several Syrian officials also confirmed to The Associated Press that the Turkish visit had recently taken place.

Israel has launched hundreds of strikes on Syria since the December 2024 toppling of Assad by Islamist forces led by former jihadist Ahmed al-Sharaa, who relies on support from Turkey and has received enthusiastic backing from US President Donald Trump. But this strike goes much further into Syria than the so-called security zone in southern Israel.

Former prime minister Ehud Barak accused Netanyahu on Wednesday of being “reckless and stupid” in escalating tensions with Turkey, alleging that the prime minister was attempting to “stir public anxiety” ahead of the upcoming national election.

“Turkey is not Iran or Assad’s Syria,” wrote Barak in a series of posts on X. “There is no strategic problem with Turkey that cannot be resolved, mitigated, or postponed over the long term through discreet contacts coordinated with the United States and its influence in Turkey and Syria. Netanyahu has completely gone off the rails.”

The former prime minister remembers a far different Turkey. Today’s Turkey eagerly hosts Hamas, which it aids and abets for its own, Byzantine purposes.
More from the Times of Israel:

Turkey’s presidency said on X, without explicitly referring to any potential deployment plans, “Turkey will resolutely continue to cooperate with the Syrian Government on a legitimate basis for the establishment of peace, stability, and prosperity in Syria, and will never allow the destabilization of Syria.”

Two officials — who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly — said the Turkish delegation had visited the airbase in the northwestern province of Idlib Monday to review rehabilitation work underway at the facility. It was the first confirmation of a Turkish presence at the Abu Duhur base.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir visited troops in the Israel-held buffer zone in southern Syria Wednesday morning, and said Israel “will not allow hostile forces to establish themselves along our borders.”

“We see what is happening and are monitoring the changes on the Syrian front. We must prepare for them accordingly,” he said, according to remarks provided by the IDF. “We will not allow hostile forces to establish themselves along our borders, and we will know how to use our power precisely where it is needed and when it is needed.”

The IDF chief added that the military “must prevent the development of terror threats, while at the same time preventing the emergence of a significant military threat along our borders.”

The Israeli strikes on Tuesday followed worsening security tensions between Israel and Turkey and increasingly sharp rhetoric between the two countries over Syria, where both countries’ militaries are active.

Turkey, which has NATO’s second-largest army and has emerged as one of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s main allies, accuses Israel of trying to destabilize Syria and undermine its new administration, repeatedly calling for international pressure and measures on Israel to respect Syria’s territorial integrity.

Ankara has been training Syria’s army, helping it rebuild its state institutions and infrastructure, and providing military and diplomatic support.

Israel meanwhile has accused Turkey of trying to turn Syria into a Turkish protectorate and of taking advantage of the fall of the Assad regime for its own ends.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Syria: Explosions continue hours after reported Israel strikes (on Turkish renovation work at Syrian airbase, Bibi confirms)

2026-08-19

🚨 SYRIA: EXPLOSIONS CONTINUE HOURS AFTER REPORTED ISRAELI STRIKES

The Abu al-Duhur military airbase in Idlib is reportedly still burning, with secondary explosions heard hours after the attack.

Syrian state media says eight strikes hit the airbase’s runway and caused material… pic.twitter.com/Vh6aoX1L8b
— Mossad Commentary (@MOSSADil) August 18, 2026

Text:

🚨 SYRIA: EXPLOSIONS CONTINUE HOURS AFTER REPORTED ISRAELI STRIKES

The Abu al-Duhur military airbase in Idlib is reportedly still burning, with secondary explosions heard hours after the attack.

Syrian state media says eight strikes hit the airbase’s runway and caused material damage, with no casualties reported. Israel has not officially commented on the strike.

The reports of continuing secondary explosions have not yet been independently confirmed.

We wondered why the IDF went off on them, and here is the answer — the Turks!

Syria accuses Israel of undermining its defenses after fresh strikes on airbase

[Rudaw] Syria on Tuesday accused Israel of trying to undermine its defensive capabilities since the interim government took power in late 2024, as Damascus's foreign ministry condemned fresh Israeli ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
<del>Arclight</del> airstrike

...KABOOM!...
s on an airbase in northwestern Syria that coincided with reports of rehabilitation efforts at the site, purportedly backed by ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor...
"The Syrian Arab Republic condemns in the strongest terms the Israeli airstrikes targeting Abu al-Duhur Military Airbase in Idlib province," the ministry said in a statement, calling the strikes an "unjustified act of aggression" that constitutes "a flagrant violation of Syria's illusory sovereignty and territorial integrity, and a dangerous escalation that threatens security and stability in the region."

The statement said "the continuation of these Israeli attacks" since the late December 2024 ouster of longtime Syrian president Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Light of the Alawites...
aims to "undermine" Syria's efforts to "consolidate stability and avoid escalation," accusing Israel of attempting to "drag the region towards further tension and instability."

Syria further urged the international community and the UN Security Council to "clearly condemn this aggression and take a firm position against Israel's repeated violations of Syrian illusory sovereignty," while affirming it will "continue to defend its rights and national interests through legitimate means."

Earlier in the day, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), which relies on a network of sources inside Syria, reported that the strikes came amid "ongoing Ottoman Turkish rehabilitation work inside the facility," pointing to a recent visit by "a Ottoman Turkish military delegation" to "inspect the ongoing rehabilitation work."

Citing its sources, SOHR also reported that "non-Syrian fighters" had been deployed to the base, describing the activity as part of "synchronized Ottoman Turkish military and technical moves involving multiple sites," after Ottoman Turkish forces deployed radars across northern and western Syria.

Meanwhile,
...back at the hanging, Butch continued with his last words, trying not to repeat himself too often......
Tom Barrack, the US special presidential envoy for Syria and Iraq, said Washington was "deeply concerned that the confirmed Israeli airstrikes on Abu al-Duhur Airbase constitute an unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability."

He added that the government of Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa had "repeatedly indicated a preference for de-escalation with Israel," and that the US "will continue to host discussions to encourage diplomatic cadence over kinetic frustration for both nations."

In the immediate aftermath of Assad's fall, Israel launched an unprecedented campaign of airstrikes across Syria, carrying out over 350 strikes in the first 48 hours to destroy strategic military assets, naval vessels, and air defense systems.

Despite a UN-brokered disengagement agreement dating to 1974, Israeli forces also entered buffer zones east of the Golan Heights in southern Syria and pushed into Quneitra province after Sharaa and his allied forces took power, citing concerns that security vacuums could be exploited by elements linked to the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS), al-Qaeda, and Iran-aligned gangs.

By December 2025, monitoring groups documented more than 600 Israeli strikes inside Syria since the fall of the Assad regime, averaging nearly two attacks per day, concentrated heavily in Quneitra, Daraa, and Rif Dimashq provinces.

Military operations continued throughout 2026, expanding beyond airstrikes to include non-kinetic measures such as aerial herbicide spraying over farmland in Quneitra in late January 2026 to clear border zones. Cross-border festivities and strikes escalated into mid-2026, including a deadly raid near Hodr in late June.

The two sides have held several rounds of rare talks, mediated by Washington, aimed at de-escalating tensions and reactivating the 1974 Disengagement Agreement in the Golan Heights.

Syrian interim President Sharaa, in late July, addressed the Israeli presence in Syrian territory, affirming that Damascus is seeking a negotiated arrangement rather than confrontation. "Israel also has ambitions in the region. We shouldn't just overlook this aspect. We try to engage with them through reaching a security agreement," he said, adding that Damascus avoids "getting into festivities" with Israel.

More from the Times of Israel:

Israel confirmed late Tuesday that it was behind overnight airstrikes against a Syrian military airport, where it claimed Turkey was planning to deploy forces.

“Israel and Syria agreed to a status quo in security matters, which Syria was on the verge of breaching by permitting Turkish troops to deploy at an airbase near Aleppo,” said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office in an English-language statement.

The Prime Minister’s Office said Israel “repeatedly warned Syria that such a deployment would pose a threat to Israel’s security.”

“Syria chose to ignore these warnings,” Netanyahu’s office said, adding that Israel “will not tolerate threats to its security, and would welcome a return to the status quo.”

In response, Ankara decried “the frivolous allegations put forward by the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office,” according to a Turkish government statement quoted by the Anadolu state news agency, saying they “aim to legitimize Israel’s unlawful airstrikes targeting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

An unnamed Turkish official also denied to Axios that Ankara was seeking to establish a military presence at the Abu Duhur air base in Idlib province.

“There was no Turkish presence at the airbase. Israel is inventing pretexts to bomb neighboring countries and destabilize the region,” the official asserted.

DECONFLICTION MECHANISM
The attack marked extraordinary defiance by Israel of the United States, which has sought to support Syria’s new government led by a former jihadist allied with Turkey. US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack criticized the strikes as an “unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability.”

An Israeli security source cited by the Kan public broadcaster said Israel had intelligence it shared with the US on Turkish efforts to deploy troops at the base, and that the strikes were only carried out after attempts to dialogue with Syria failed. The report did not specify how the US responded to the Israeli intelligence.

Barrack, a business friend of US President Donald Trump who is also ambassador to Turkey, later said the United States was working to establish a deconfliction mechanism among Israel, Turkey and Syria.

According to Barrack, Turkey was not warned about the Israeli strikes, “and consequently observed the aircraft heading north toward its territory and therefore could have reasonably prepared its own response,” referring to possible Turkish military reaction.

“Thankfully, calm heads were able to prevent the situation from deteriorating further,” Barrack told Reuters in a phone interview.

Turkey, which has NATO’s second-largest army and signed a mutual defense pact this month with Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, has become one of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s main allies.

Ankara has been training Syria’s army, helping it rebuild state institutions and infrastructure and providing military and diplomatic support.

Israel’s strikes on the Syrian airbase “reflected a perception — whether accurate or misplaced — that Türkiye might in the near future increase its presence at that base,” Barrack said, using the Turkish name for Turkey.

“This underscores the need for a deconfliction mechanism involving Israel, Syria and Türkiye. That is something we are actively working on to establish in order to prevent future miscommunication,” he said. “The priority now is to lower tensions and allow space for a more measured approach.”

The airbase, about 70 kilometers (43.5 miles) east of the Turkish border, has been out of service as a dedicated military airfield since 2013 and changed hands several times during Syria’s 14-year civil war between forces loyal to former president Bashar al-Assad and opposition factions.

Syria’s state-run Ekhbariya television, citing a military source, said on Tuesday that Israel carried out eight airstrikes on the base’s runway and storage facilities. A separate military source and a civilian who lives near the base said there were no casualties.

Senior Israeli official to Fox News when asked about the reported Israeli strikes in Syria overnight:

“Highly sensitive intelligence was shared with the United States in advance, at the most senior levels of the various agencies and bodies," the official said. “Al-Sharaa…
— Trey Yingst (@TreyYingst) August 18, 2026

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran

100 Alawites killed in Syria since January in ‘sectarian’ crimes: Watchdog

2026-08-18

[Rudaw] Tens of members of Syria's Alawite community have been killed since the start of 2026 in “crimes bearing a sectarian nature,” a UK-based human rights watchdog reported on Monday, noting that the Damascus authorities have yet to make any arrests or initiate judicial proceedings in connection with the killings.

The “documented” crimes “varied between direct gunfire, throwing bombs, and kidnapping,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said, pointing to the verified killing of 86 men, nine women, and five children from the community.

“Despite continuous demands to launch serious and transparent investigations, reveal the circumstances of the killings, and hold those responsible accountable,” SOHR said, “The relevant authorities [in Damascus] have not announced the arrest of any perpetrators of these crimes or their presentation to justice.”

"The continued absence of accountability deepens fear and erodes trust, leaving the door open for further crimes and impunity," the rights monitor added.

The report comes a year after more than 1,700 Alawites were killed by Damascus forces and affiliated armed groups in March 2025. The deadly events placed Syria's interim authorities, which came to power following the ouster of longtime Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in late 2024, under intense international scrutiny.

More at the link

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Clashes erupt between security forces, locals in Syria's Azaz

2026-07-20

[Rudaw] Security forces clashed with locals in Syria's northwestern city of Azaz in Aleppo province on Saturday. Police said they came under gunfire while breaking up an armed clash.

Footage published on social media platforms shows a convoy of security forces clashing with unidentified people in Azaz late Saturday. Some accounts claimed the fighting was between state-affiliated forces and an gang.

Internal Security Forces said in a statement that they were not party to the conflict.

"Patrol personnel handled the situation cautiously in accordance with approved procedures, while the Directorate sent additional security reinforcements to the area. Specialized units continue to handle the situation on the ground to ensure civilian protection and prevent the festivities from spreading," the force's branch in Azaz said in an overnight statement relayed by state media.

It warned that any attack on security forces "will be prosecuted legally."

Protests reportedly erupted in the city following the festivities and the deployment of more security forces.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based monitor that relies on a network of sources inside Syria, said the tensions followed a "security campaign against several wanted suspects in cases related to drug dealing."

SOHR added that "armed festivities erupted with groups that refused to hand over a wanted suspect, amid extensive shooting in several neighbourhoods of the city."

Azaz, near the Ottoman Turkish border in northern Aleppo province, was long a stronghold of the Ottoman Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) and served as the group's de facto headquarters before its factions were folded into the new Syrian armed forces following the fall of the Assad government.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Syria starts trials over deadly 2025 violence in Druze heartland

2026-07-05

Justice, justice shalt thou pursue.
~ Deuteronomy 16:20

[IsraelTimes] Syrian authorities said Friday that they had begun trying suspects over a wave of deadly violence that tore through the Druze-majority Sweida province last year.

The episode last July involved some of the worst internecine bloodshed the country had seen since the toppling of longtime ruler Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Bashir <q>Pencilneck</q> al-Assad

Oppressor of the Syrians and the Lebs...
in late 2024, and raised questions about the new government’s stated commitment to ensuring the safety of all of Syria’s multi-confessional communities.

The violence began with festivities between Druze factions and Bedouin fighters in the southern province, with security forces then intervening on the side of the Bedouins, along with other tribal groups. Israel intervened to protect the Druze.

In the end, more than 2,000 people were killed, including 789 Druze civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor. A committee formed by the Syrian government said it had documented the killing of 1,760 people.

The head of the investigative committee said in a statement published by the justice ministry that a court in Damascus had begun examining cases "in public sessions as of July 1, with the defendants and their legal representatives present."

The statement added that the proceedings were meant to "establish the facts and hold accountable anyone proven responsible for any violations... regardless of their position or the side to which the acts are attributed." It added that other people were still under investigation.

Government forces and their allies were accused at the time of executing civilians and committing other abuses.

The committee announced in March that it had drawn up "a list of suspects from the (ministries of) defence and interior, Druze factions and civilians — including Bedouins and tribes — for serious crimes and violations."

The same month, UN Sherlocks said war crimes and crimes against humanity might have been committed in Sweida.

The United Nations
...an organization conceived in the belief that we're just one big happy world, with the sort of results you'd expect from such nonsense...
Commission of Inquiry on Syria (COI) has been probing international law violations there since the start of the long civil war that devastated the country from 2011 until the overthrow of Assad.

The COI said it had documented "widespread executions, torture, gender-based violence and the burning of homes" in Sweida.

Damascus’s intervention against the Druze in Sweida last year triggered Israeli strikes on Syrian government forces, with Israel saying the strikes were necessary to protect the Druze, about 150,000 of whom live in Israel and often serve in its military.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Zionist forces attack Syrian town of Abdin

2026-06-30