‘We Will Not Allow Southern Syria to Become Southern Lebanon’: Israeli Warplanes Strike Military Targets in Syria

Latest Developments

Israel Strikes Military Sites: The Israeli Air Force conducted airstrikes on Syrian territory on February 25, including the town of Kisweh, approximately 12 miles south of Damascus, and the southern Daraa and Quneitra provinces. The IDF said that the strikes targeted “command centers and multiple sites containing weapons.” Syrian media reported that Syrian soldiers were killed and wounded in the strikes but did not specify a number. A spokesperson for Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that the attacks were “part of the new policy we have defined to pacify southern Syria — and the message is clear: we will not allow southern Syria to become southern Lebanon.”
Netanyahu Demands Demilitarization of Southern Syria: The strikes came hours after Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, called for the Israeli military to withdraw from Syria during a national unity conference. Since December, when Syrian rebel forces led by al-Sharaa toppled former dictator Bashar al-Assad’s regime, the IDF has taken control of a UN-monitored demilitarized zone on Syria’s border with Israel and conducted airstrikes on Syrian military equipment. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on February 23 that Israel would not allow rebel forces or “the new Syrian army to enter the area south of Damascus,” demanding the complete demilitarization of the southern provinces of Quneitra, Daraa, and Suwayda.
Druze Militias Form Alliance in South: On February 24, a group of Druze defenders in the Suwayda province announced the formation of the Suwayda Military Council, a coalition of local armed groups with the stated aim of protecting Druze communities in the region against potential attacks and rights violations by Syrian government forces. In his statement, Netanyahu also warned Syrian leaders that Israel “will not tolerate any threat to the Druze community in southern Syria.” As well as Syria, the Druze minority is concentrated in Israel, Lebanon, and Jordan.

FDD Expert Response

“Israel can no longer settle for passive defense in the post-October 7 era. Nor does it yet have adequate reason to trust al-Sharaa’s long-term intentions. But Israel must deal with the situation in Syria delicately. While the Syrian people aren’t flocking to make peace with Israel, neither are they clamoring for war. They seek to mend the wounds of their bloody civil war and rebuild their state against monumental odds. Israel must be cognizant of this with every action and statement on Syria, lest it squander the possibility of friendship — or at least neutrality — with the Syrian people.” — David Daoud, Senior Fellow

“Israel is signaling to the new leadership in Damascus that it will not tolerate any military presence in southern Syria. However, a demilitarized south would leave the new government unable to assert control, creating a vulnerability that external actors like Iran could exploit. For Ahmad al-Sharaa, allowing Israeli operations in the south would be a major blow to his legitimacy, especially as he works to establish his nascent state.” — Ahmad Sharawi, Research Analyst