Israeli airstrikes have killed at least four people across southern Syria, according to state media and government officials, as the conflict between Israel and the country’s new authorities intensifies.
The attacks on Tuesday, August 26, targeted multiple locations near Damascus and in the Golan Heights.
Syrian officials say Israel has carried out “hundreds of strikes” since an Islamist-led alliance toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.
Despite the air raids, Israel has also opened talks with Syria’s interim leadership, raising questions about the dual-track approach of negotiations alongside military pressure.
A Syrian defence ministry official told AFP that three soldiers were killed in an Israeli drone strike on a military facility in Kiswah, west of Damascus.
“An Israeli drone targeted one of the military buildings of the 44th Division of the Syrian army, killing three members of the division,” the official said, requesting anonymity.
Earlier, Syria’s state news agency SANA reported that a young man was killed when an Israeli strike hit a home in the village of Taranja, close to the Golan Heights armistice line.
Syria’s foreign ministry strongly condemned the latest attacks, describing them as violations of international law and the UN Charter.
It accused Israeli forces of carrying out “incursions into towns in Quneitra, arresting civilians, and entrenching their illegal presence on Mount Hermon and in the buffer zone.”
“These aggressive practices constitute a flagrant violation of Security Council resolutions and a direct threat to regional peace and security,” the ministry added.
Saudi Arabia denounced the strikes as a “flagrant violation of Syrian sovereignty”, while Qatar urged the international community to take decisive action to stop Israel’s repeated attacks.
The Israeli military, however, maintained that its actions were part of operations to “locate weapons and apprehend suspects” in southern Syria.
Since Assad’s ouster last year, Israel has taken control of much of the UN-patrolled demilitarised zone along the armistice line, including the strategic summit of Mount Hermon the highest point in the region.
Just last week, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani met Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer in Paris to discuss a potential return to security arrangements established under the 1974 disengagement accord.