DaysofPal – Israeli warplanes launched a series of airstrikes on Wednesday targeting the Syrian army’s general staff headquarters in the heart of Damascus, marking a significant escalation in Israel’s military activity across Syria.
The strikes followed what Israel called a “warning” operation earlier in the day and came amid heightened tensions over the Syrian regime’s actions in Druze-populated areas in the south.
According to a statement by the Israeli military, fighter jets struck the entrance gate to the Syrian army’s general command compound in Damascus in response to what Defense Minister Yisrael Katz described as the Syrian regime’s presence in Suwayda and nearby Druze villages. Katz publicly warned the government to withdraw its forces from the area and “leave the Druze alone.”
The Israeli army further threatened more strikes, stating it was “monitoring developments and actions against Druze citizens in Syria” and would act “based on instructions from the political level.”
The army added that it had placed additional aircraft on alert and diverted them to the Syrian front, signaling preparations for further operations.
The Damascus strike was part of a wider Israeli aerial campaign across southern Syria. Earlier Wednesday, Israeli jets bombed several military positions belonging to the Syrian army in the provinces of Suwayda and Daraa.
Local sources and state media reported strikes on the Shagrawiya area in the Suwayda countryside and the vicinity of the Thala military airport, where casualties were reported among Syrian government forces. Further attacks struck the 52nd Brigade base in Al-Harak, located in the Daraa countryside.
A day earlier, Israeli jets targeted a military convoy as it withdrew from Suwayda, followed by another strike near Izra in eastern Daraa, which reportedly caused only material damage.
The official Syrian news agency SANA confirmed the Israeli strikes and reported that two people were injured in the attack on Damascus. No further details were provided on the extent of the damage or whether the wounded were civilians or military personnel.
The occupation army claimed that its raids were “to protect the Druze” in Suwayda, which has been witnessing clashes between local armed factions and Bedouin tribes since Sunday against the backdrop of mutual detentions, before Syrian security forces intervened to calm the situation.
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