Israel taking advantage of ‘free-for-all’ in Syria to launch attacks
Israel has been attacking targets linked to Iran and Hezbollah in Syria for several years, but Russia’s sudden marginalisation has enabled it to hit military sites in the country with no restrictions, analyst Aron Lund told Al Jazeera.
Prior to the Syrian government’s collapse, “Israel operated under rules set in negotiations with Moscow, which appear to have included a promise not to seriously destabilise al-Assad’s rule,” said Lund, who is a fellow with Century International and a Middle East analyst at the Swedish Defense Research Agency.
“Now, Russia is no longer constraining Israeli action,” he added.
In its large-scale attacks across Syria, Israel has been going after Syrian military infrastructure as well as Iran-linked assets that have been revealed in the past few days as government officials fled. It also launched an incursion into what it sees as a buffer zone on the edge of the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights.
“It’s a free-for-all in Syria and Israel is taking full advantage of it,” Lund said. “The international community doesn’t seem to care, although I think at some point there will be more criticism, especially if Israeli troops move deeper into the areas south of Damascus.”
How the international community reacts to the situation on the ground will be “especially important because Syria is already in the throes of an extreme economic crisis” and “things are now likely to get worse,” he added.
“How do you get humanitarian aid to Syria at scale, when the capital is controlled by a UN-designated terrorist group?” Lund asked. “How do you get Syria’s economy to function and feed millions of people when the previous source of energy, which was oil shipments from Iran, has suddenly vanished?”
Israel has launched nearly 310 air strikes in Syria since al-Assad’s fall: War monitor
Israeli warplanes have targeted factories in Aleppo belonging to the Syrian Air Force, as well as weapons and ammunition warehouses on the outskirts of Damascus and a number of other places across Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
The UK-based war monitor said, “the attacks resulted in complete suspension of air defences and put all targeted positions out of system”.
An extensive list of the targeted military assets in various provinces, including Deir Az Zor, Hama, Homs, Hasakah, Latakia, Damascus, Rif Dimashq, Deraa, Quneitra and Aleppo.
Syrian navy ships in Latakia destroyed by Israeli attacks
Israel targeted at least six Syrian navy vessels: Ambrey
British security firm Ambrey says the Israeli military targeted at least six Syrian naval vessels in an attack on the Syrian port of Latakia on Monday.
Ambrey said video footage showed one naval vessel and indicated five others had been sunk without any visible damage being done to the port’s infrastructure.
Syrian security sources told Reuters on Monday that Israel’s military had targeted an air defence installation near Latakia. The attack followed the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by rebel forces.
UK’s Lammy defends Israel’s strikes on Syria
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy has defended Israel’s extensive bombing of Syria by saying Israel had “legitimate” concerns.
“It’s right to understand that Israel has legitimate security concerns in a country that’s housed ISIS [ISIL] and al-Qaeda,” Lammy said in response to a parliamentary question by MP Brendan O’Hara, adding that he had spoken to his Israeli counterpart.
“It’s for all of those reasons that we want an inclusive society that supports everyone, but none of us can have truck with terrorist groups,” he said.
USA/UK/Germany/Israel can all go fuck themselves.
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