Israeli Army Radio reported on Tuesday that the air force “attacked 250 targets in Syria over the past days,” in what it described as “one of the largest attacks in our history.”
The radio quoted a military source as saying that “the air force destroyed dozens of Syrian warplanes in its attacks.”
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the Israeli army “destroyed the most important military sites in Syria.”
The Observatory added that it had “documented about 310 Israeli raids on Syrian territory since the fall of the regime of Bashar al-Assad on Sunday,” while journalists from the AFP agency in the capital reported hearing explosions early Tuesday.
Agence France-Presse reported that the scientific research center in Damascus, affiliated with the Syrian Ministry of Defense, which was targeted by Israeli raids on Monday evening, was completely destroyed.
The Barzeh center, which the United States says is linked to Syria’s chemical weapons program, was targeted in April 2018 during coordinated US, French, and British strikes, but no chemical fumes or gas leaks have been reported.
In parallel with the air aggression, Israeli media reported that the Israeli army occupied nine villages in the southern countryside of Damascus.
“The army arrived near the town of Qatana in the Damascus countryside, 10 km (about six miles) from Damascus neighborhoods and 15 km (about nine miles) from the city center,” the Israeli media said, adding that “the army is present in the interior of Syria.”
Pedersen: The current Israeli moves in Syria must stop
For his part, the UN envoy to Syria, Geir Pedersen, stressed that “the country is at a crossroads now, and the current Israeli moves on Syrian territory must stop.”
Pedersen called for “credible and inclusive transitional arrangements in Damascus.”
He warned of further conflicts unless the widest range of ethnic groups and Syrian parties are involved, noting that “Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is the dominant group in Damascus currently, but it is not the only one.”
“Nine years have passed since HTS was classified as a terrorist group, and it continues to send good and reassuring messages with others,” he said.
“I think the international community will reconsider the issue of designating HTS as a terrorist organization,” he added.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
