Israel struck Syrian targets after rockets were fired from Syria; Syria condemned the attack amid rising post-Assad tensions.

Israel has confirmed it carried out airstrikes targeting weapons stockpiles in Syria, just hours after reports emerged that two projectiles had been fired from Syrian territory into Israel on Tuesday.

According to Syria’s foreign ministry, the Israeli airstrikes in southern Syria resulted in “significant human and material losses.” The ministry accused Israel of seeking to destabilise the region, stating that the escalation was a “blatant violation of Syrian sovereignty” that only serves to inflame regional tensions. It added: “Syria has never been and will never be a threat to anyone in the region.”

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz placed direct blame on Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa for the projectile attacks, despite ongoing indirect negotiations aimed at reducing hostilities between the two countries. Tensions have risen since Sharaa led a successful rebel uprising that ousted longtime Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. Since then, Israel has increased its military activity against targets in Syria.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that violent explosions were heard across southern Syria, particularly in the town of Quneitra and the Daraa region, following the Israeli air raids.

The Israeli military stated that its strikes were in response to two projectiles launched from Syria, which landed in open, uninhabited areas within Israel and caused no injuries or property damage. Israeli media noted that these were the first projectiles fired from Syrian territory since the fall of the Assad regime. The identity of the perpetrators remains unknown.

“We hold the president of Syria directly responsible for any threats or acts of aggression against the State of Israel,” said Defence Minister Katz.

Syria’s foreign ministry, however, contested the claims, stating that reports of the projectiles being launched from within Syria “have not been verified yet.”

Following the collapse of Assad’s regime, Israel initiated a series of strikes aimed at dismantling Syrian military infrastructure. Simultaneously, it has promoted the expansion of Israeli settlements in the Golan Heights—a region captured from Syria in 1976 and considered occupied territory under international law.

In a separate development last month, U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to lift longstanding sanctions on Syria. These sanctions had been imposed in response to atrocities committed by forces loyal to Assad during the 13-year civil war, which killed more than 600,000 people and displaced 12 million.

Also last month, Israel carried out an airstrike near Syria’s presidential palace in Damascus. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the strike as a “clear message” that Israel would not permit the deployment of hostile forces south of Damascus. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the bombing as a “violation of Syria’s sovereignty.”