Israel acknowledges strike in Syria condemned by US

As diplomatic negotiations between Iran and the United States falter, Israel has carried out a military strike on a Syrian air base near the city of Idlib, a move that has drawn sharp condemnation from the Trump administration. Breaking its tradition of silence, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Tuesday that Israel had targeted a military airport in northwestern Syria, an assertion that the US described as an "unnecessary escalation."

The Israeli leader claimed that the attack was necessary to prevent the deployment of Turkish troops to the base located near Aleppo. He stated that Israel and Syria, which have no formal diplomatic ties but have engaged in discussions under the framework of the Trump administration, had a "status quo" regarding security matters.

Netanyahu warned through a statement on social media platform X that Syria risked destabilizing this arrangement by potentially allowing Turkish troops to operate from the Abu al-Duhur base. He emphasized that Israel had consistently cautioned Syria about the dangers such a deployment would pose to its own security and reiterated Israel's commitment to not tolerate threats to its security, urging a return to the existing status quo.

Netanyahu, known for his public feud with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has accused the Turkish leader of supporting the militant group Hamas and has opposed the sale of US-made F-35 fighter jets to Turkey. Turkish officials, on the other hand, have labeled Israel as a "burden humanity can no longer bear." As news of the airstrikes on the Abu al-Duhur military airport emerged on Tuesday, US envoy Tom Barrack expressed deep concern, stating that the Israeli strikes on the base constituted an unnecessary escalation that did not contribute to regional stability.

Barrack added that Washington was urging all parties involved to focus on constructive dialogue rather than further military confrontations.