TEL AVIV — The Israeli Air Drive on Thursday struck the headquarters of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group in Damascus, Syria, amid ongoing instability within the nation following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad by an al Qaeda-linked insurgency.
After the autumn of Damascus on Dec. 8, 2024, Israel deployed troops to the demilitarized buffer zone with Syria whereas additionally launching a diplomatic offensive to form the steadiness of energy.
“The deployment of Israeli forces is concentrated across the Syrian [side of Mount] Hermon, the excessive grounds in that space and beneath that on the northern a part of the Syrian Golan Heights — roughly alongside, however not past, the Bravo Line [marking the end of the buffer zone],” Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan Conricus, a former IDF spokesman and now a senior fellow on the Basis for Protection of Democracies, informed Fox Information Digital.
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The Chief of the Normal Employees, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, visited and performed a situational evaluation within the Space of Separation in Syria. (IDF)
He continued, “The first risk is a floor invasion in direction of Israeli communities on the Golan Heights by numerous jihadi parts. Till the political and army state of affairs stabilizes and Israel can have safety ensures that there’s certainly a sovereign entity accountable for Syria, which is able to restrict the method by numerous terror organizations, Israeli troops shall be deployed.”
Whereas many world gamers could also be keen to show a blind eye to the carnage in Syria in hopes of resolving the almost 15-year disaster, analysts say Israel has no such illusions, prompting the IDF to conduct over 300 strikes within the nation, together with towards Assad regime air power bases and suspected chemical weapons websites, within the rapid aftermath of the regime change.
On Sunday, Israel seemingly upped the ante when the brand new IDF Chief of Employees, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, held a situational evaluation within the buffer zone with Syria. Zamir was the primary chief of workers to have entered Syria.
“Instantly upon the autumn of the regime, [Israel] devastated Syrian army capabilities to ensure some superior capabilities and air protection [systems] wouldn’t fall into the arms of this regime and could be cleared in case Israel has any future want to overfly [in] Syria,” stated John Hannah, a Senior Fellow on the Jewish Institute for Nationwide Safety of America (JINSA).
Safety forces loyal to the interim Syrian authorities journey behind a automobile shifting alongside a highway in Syria’s western metropolis of Latakia on March 9. (Omar Haj Kadour/AFP through Getty Pictures)
“They’ve [also] arrange checkpoints in sure Druze areas proper on the border [and] declared their willingness to guard the Druze. Israel has a big Druze minority of its personal who’re loyal and good residents of Israel who struggle in its military. So, Israel has a deep home concern and curiosity with ensuring that Druze communities close to its borders [in Syria] aren’t topic to the sorts of threats and slaughter that we noticed over the weekend alongside the [Syrian] coast,” he added.
Some 1,000 Alawites, a minority sect of Shiite Islam, in addition to numerous Christians had been murdered over the course of some days final week within the coastal provinces of Tartus and Latakia. The killings have laid naked issues over the brand new Sunni Islamist authorities led by al-Sharaa, commander of the al Qaeda-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) that deposed Assad.
A banner depicting then-Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Russian President Vladimir Putin and studying “Justice Prevails” is displayed alongside a freeway within the Syrian capital of Damascus on March 8, 2022. (Louai Beshara/AFP through Getty Pictures)
Conricus stated that the massacres have validated Israel’s technique, emphasizing that the persecution of the Alawites, Christians, Kurds and Druze inhabitants constitutes a hazard to regional stability.
“There may be a number of sectarian violence by numerous overseas jihadi teams, which is a risk. Till solely the Syrian state controls the weapons, Israel can not jeopardize the lifetime of Israeli civilians,” he stated.
“We all know Hezbollah and Iranian factions proceed to attempt to smuggle weapons into Syria, with Tehran nonetheless attempting to function proxies. That is compounded by Turkish imperialistic conduct, which might result in confrontation,” he added. “I believe attempting to maintain the borders outlined by the French on the finish of World Warfare I shall be a problem for the Syrian state.”
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Ahmed al-Sharaa Hayat, former al Qaeda terrorist and present Interim President of Syria, in Idlib, Syria, on the border with Turkey on Feb. 7, 2023. (Omar Haj Kadour/AFP through Getty Pictures)
Jonathan Spyer, director of analysis on the Center East Discussion board who has reported from Syria, informed Fox Information Digital that Jerusalem’s goal is for Syria to stay decentralized and weak, reasonably than united beneath the management of jihadi forces.
“Turkey is the principle backer of HTS, and Israel regards Ankara as a hostile nation the place Hamas had an energetic operations workplace. Turkey has been supportive of Hamas within the battle,” he stated.
“Whereas Russia is against the worldwide bloc led by the U.S., of which Israel is a component, there isn’t any direct conflict between the 2 nations. Russia didn’t seek to impede Israel’s bombing marketing campaign towards Iran in Syria.”
Israel is reportedly pressuring the Trump administration to make sure Syria stays fragmented, by giving the Russians a inexperienced gentle to keep up its bases within the nation to counter Turkey.
Folks wave weapons within the air as they collect to have fun the autumn of the Syrian regime in Umayyad Sq. in Damascus, Syria, on Dec. 8, 2024. (Ali Haj Suleiman/Getty Pictures)
In 2015, Russia intervened in Syria on behalf of the Assad regime, organising outposts within the Center East for the primary time for the reason that finish of the Chilly Warfare. Jerusalem and Moscow have created a deconfliction mechanism to keep away from direct army encounters when the IDF strikes Iranian terror property in Syria, together with these destined for Hezbollah in Lebanon.
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“HTS is a company that Israel is aware of nicely. It was there for a number of years previous to fall of Assad and its document reveals it’s a Sunni Jihadi Islamist group supportive of [Hamas’] Oct. 7 [massacre] and against Israel and Jews,” Spyer stated.
“Israel’s expertise previous to Oct. 7, on Oct. 7, and within the Gaza battle taught Israelis to not have illusions concerning Sunni Islamists even once they say they’re reasonable,” he added.
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