Syria and Israel held US-mediated talks in Jordan on August 23, the highest-level session yet between the two governments. Syria's foreign minister led a delegation that included army and intelligence chiefs, but the meeting did not stop the attacks: Israel bombed targets near Damascus and in Lebanon days later.
US envoy Tom Barrack says Israel gave no warning before the August 18 Abu al-Duhur airbase strike; Defense Minister Israel Katz disputes that. Turkey and Syria deny Turkish troops were at the base. Israel is deciding, strike by strike, how much of an army post-Assad Syria gets to rebuild, and Turkey is pushing back.
Why it matters
Israel is deciding, strike by strike, how much of an army post-Assad Syria gets to rebuild, and Turkey is pushing back.
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Ayn Rand
(1905-1982) ·Cold War · philosophy
Fictional AI pastiche — not real quote.
"A nation that defends its borders by force of arms, without apology, without the whine of collective guilt, is at least acting on the premise that its survival is a value worth fighting for — a premise the mewling chorus of condemning states, who produce nothing but grievance, will never understand. Whether Mr. Netanyahu's calculations are electoral or existential is a separate question; the right of self-defense does not require a permission slip from the Arab League."
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Israel keeps striking military sites in post-Assad Syria
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15 events
Latest: August 26th, 2026 · 1 week ago
Showing 8 of 15
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August 2026
Israel strikes near Damascus days after the Jordan talks
LatestMilitary
Syria said an Israeli strike near Damascus violated international law. Attacks continued in Syria and Lebanon despite the US-mediated talks a few days earlier.
US envoy says Israel gave no warning before Syria strike; Katz disputes
Diplomacy
US special envoy Daniel Barrack said Israel did not warn Washington before the Abu al-Duhur strike. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz countered that Israel had warned Syria's leadership and shared intelligence with the US.
Israel and Turkey edge toward military clash, election context cited
Analysis
NBC News reported that the strike and subsequent rhetoric appeared aimed not just at regional rivals but at Israeli voters ahead of an election campaign.
Syria and Israel hold US-mediated talks in Jordan
Diplomacy
A Syrian delegation led by Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, with army and intelligence chiefs, met Israeli officials in Amman under American mediation. Damascus said the focus was halting Israeli strikes and reviving a security agreement; reports say Israel's Mossad chief attended.
Katz warns Erdogan against 'dangerous adventures' in Syria
Diplomacy
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Erdogan was dragging Turkey into a risky confrontation in Syria and warned him not to test Israel's resolve.
US works on Israel-Turkey deconfliction; Syria denies Turkish base plans
Diplomacy
Reuters reported Washington is working to establish deconfliction between Israel and Turkey in Syria. Syria's foreign ministry said Turkish officers had visited Abu al-Duhur for training and military cooperation, with no plans for a Turkish base there.
Turkey denies deploying troops, warns against routine strikes
Diplomacy
Turkey's defense ministry said no Turkish troops were at Abu al-Duhur and warned Israeli strikes inside Syria must not become routine.
Syria says it had given assurances before the strike happened anyway
Diplomacy
Syria's foreign minister told Axios that Damascus had given assurances about the airbase, but Israel struck it regardless.
Five Arab states and the Arab League condemn the strike
Diplomacy
Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, along with the Arab League, condemned the strike as a violation of Syrian sovereignty.
Israel strikes the Abu al-Duhur airfield
Military
Eight Israeli strikes hit the runway and storage sites of the Idlib airfield, causing damage but no casualties. Israel does not claim the operation.
Trump briefed on strike, declines to criticize Israel
Diplomacy
President Trump said he had been briefed on the Israeli operation but declined to comment, even as his own ambassador to Turkey called it an unnecessary escalation.
July 2026
Sharaa says Syria is pursuing a security deal with Israel
Diplomacy
Syria's president says talks, backed by several countries, aim to get Israeli troops out of the southern buffer zone.
March 2026
Israel bombs sites Turkey wanted for airbases
Military
Israeli F-35s strike three central Syrian locations Turkish planners had earmarked for future airbases, pre-empting a Turkish presence.
December 2024
Israel destroys most of Syria's air defenses
Military
Within days of Assad's fall, Israel says it has knocked out more than 80% of Syrian air defenses and seized a southern buffer zone.
Assad falls, rebels take Damascus
Regime Change
Rebel forces led by Ahmed al-Sharaa topple Bashar al-Assad, ending more than five decades of Assad family rule.
Historical Context
3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
1 of 3
June 1981
Israel's strike on Iraq's Osirak reactor (1981)
Israeli jets destroyed Iraq's nearly finished Osirak nuclear reactor near Baghdad. Prime Minister Menachem Begin said Israel would not let a hostile state gain a capability that could threaten it.
Then
The strike drew wide international condemnation, including a UN Security Council rebuke.
Now
It fixed a doctrine of preventive strikes to deny an adversary a military capability before it matures.
Why this matters now
The logic of hitting Abu al-Duhur before it can be reactivated echoes this deny-the-capability doctrine.
2 of 3
2013-2024
Israel's air campaign against Iran in Syria (2013-2024)
For a decade under Assad, Israel ran hundreds of strikes on Iranian weapons transfers and bases inside Syria. It rarely confirmed individual operations, a policy known as the campaign between the wars.
Then
Israel degraded Iranian entrenchment without triggering a full war with Syria or Iran.
Now
It normalized frequent, unclaimed Israeli strikes inside Syria as a standing tool.
Why this matters now
The silence around the Abu al-Duhur strike mirrors this playbook: hit the site, say nothing.
3 of 3
December 2024
Israel's opening strikes on post-Assad Syria (December 2024)
Days after Assad fell, Israel launched hundreds of strikes across Syria. It said it destroyed more than 80% of the country's air defenses and its residual air force. Israeli troops also crossed into a southern buffer zone.
Then
Syria's new government inherited a military stripped of most air power and air defense.
Now
It set the pattern the Abu al-Duhur strike follows: Israel acts to keep Syria's army weak, whoever governs.
Why this matters now
The August 2026 strike is a continuation of this campaign, not a one-off event.
