Illustrative image (The Israeli Defense Forces)
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced on March 21 that it struck two air bases in the central Syrian governorate of Homs overnight.
In a statement, the military said that the strikes targeted “remaining strategic military capabilities” at the Palmyra military airport and the nearby T-4 airbase.
The airstrikes were launched after the Israeli Air Intelligence Group – the Israeli Air Force (IAF) intelligence unit – had been monitoring weapons and other strategic capabilities at the two military sites in central Syria over the recent period.
The strikes carried out by IAF fighter jets at both Palmyra and T-4 were described by military sources as “extensive,” taking out capabilities that would ensure the preservation of Israel’s aerial superiority in the region.
Video footage released by the IDF showed what appears to be vehicles and structures at the two air bases being targeted. Other videos posted to social networks showed large explosions and secondary blasts consistent with the destruction of air defense systems.
At least two personnel of the new Syrian military were wounded in the Israeli strikes on Palmyra, according to Syrian media.
Following the fall of the Assad regime last December, the IDF invaded the buffer zone adjacent to the occupied Golan Heights and established nine posts there. The military also launched hundreds of strikes against the country, destroying much of its combat capabilities including warships, warplanes, air defense systems and ballistic missiles.
The last few days saw an uptake in Israeli strikes on Syria. At least five were killed in an attack that targeted bases in the southern governorate of Daraa on March 17. Additional strikes hit the southern governorate of al-Qunitra and the central governorate of Homs on March 18. Another wave of strikes targeted the southern governorate of Rif Dimashq on March 21, according to unverified reports.
Israeli officials have repeatedly criticized Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, with Defense Minister Israel Katz even calling him an “extreme Islamic leader.”
Sharaa has dismissed Israel’s threats and Katz’s comments as “nonsense,” and his government has denounced Israel’s continued strikes in the country, as well as the IDF’s presence in a buffer zone in southern Syria. However, the country is yet to respond in any way.
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