Tuesday’s air strikes on an airbase in northwest Syria have been blamed on Israel, and, according to analysts, they are a message not just to the government in Damascus, but also to its ally, Turkiye. While Israel has yet to officially claim the attacks, Syria, the United States and Jordan have all said the attack on the Abu al-Duhur airbase in Idlib was the latest Israeli strike on its neighbour. On December 8, 2024, Syrian rebel forces took Damascus, overthrowing the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
In the subsequent hours, Israel’s air force attacked Syrian military bases and infrastructure, in strikes that are believed to have knocked out much of the new Syrian government’s air defence. In the hours after al-Assad’s fall, Israel also seized areas in the Syrian Golan Heights and illegally occupied the strategic point of Jabal al-Sheikh. Since then, Israel has set up checkpoints on Syrian territory, where it has harassed and at times kidnapped Syrian citizens.
In March 2025, Israel struck two Syrian airbases – T4 in Homs and the Palmyra airbase – that the news agency had reported had previously been visited by Turkish military delegations. And then, in July of the same year, Israel bombed Syria’s Ministry of Defence in the heart of Damascus. Israeli officials have repeatedly stated that they see Syria’s new government as a threat, even though it has grown closer to the West – including the US.
Israel’s government under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also repeatedly warned Syria not to move troops south of Damascus – closer to the Israeli border – despite the new administration stating on multiple occasions that it does not seek a confrontation with Israel. International Crisis Group’s senior analyst for Syria, Nanar Hawach, said only airstrips and storage facilities were damaged, but that no jets were destroyed. Many analysts said the Israelis were trying to send a message that Syria should not rebuild its air force, which it has taken steps to do – such as repairing facilities and aircraft and training new personnel.
He said, however, that the remaining jets in the Syrian air force’s armoury posed little threat to the Israelis. Analysts also said the Israeli strike was likely a message directed at Turkiye. Turkiye was a backer of some anti-Assad rebel groups throughout the war, and continues to have a military presence in northern Syria.
Israel has previously expressed concern and opposition to Turkish influence in Syria. Netanyahu has reportedly held security consultations over Ankara’s role in Syria and has talked up the threat from Turkiye, NATO’s second-largest army after the US. Naftali Bennett, the former Israeli prime minister who is also in the running to replace Netanyahu when Israel goes to the polls in October, has also called Turkiye “the new Iran”.
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