Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defense Minister, Israel Katz, announced this Friday that the Syrian army carried out an attack “near the Presidential Palace” in Syria, located in the capital, Damascus, following clashes between the Druze minority and pro-government Syrian fighters.
“This is a clear message to the Syrian regime: we will not allow the deployment of forces south of Damascus or any threat to the Druze community,” they said in a joint statement reported by The Times of Israel.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) subsequently issued a statement confirming that Air Force fighter jets bombed the vicinity of the residential compound of Syria’s interim president, jihadist leader Ahmed al-Shara.
The fighting, which has resulted in a provisional death toll of 75, erupted after a message attributed to a Druze cleric was posted on social media, considered insulting to the Prophet Muhammad. This message led to a campaign of “sectarian incitement” that has even led Israel to demand that the authorities guarantee the protection of the Druze.
The death toll from the clashes continues to rise daily, despite the fact that Syrian authorities and Jaramana dignitaries reached an agreement to end the tensions. In recent hours, the Syrian Interior Ministry stressed that the agreement “stipulates the immediate delivery of heavy weapons and an increased deployment of forces” to “consolidate stability and restore normalcy.”
