Israel bombs key Syrian military sites in 'warning' to Turkiye

As Israel continues to steal Syrian territory in the south, officials have raised the possibility of a 'confrontation' with their allies in Ankara  

News Desk - The Cradle

The Israeli air force launched over a dozen airstrikes on various cities in Syria on 2 April, targeting the Barzeh scientific research center just outside Damascus, the Hama military airport in western Syria, and the T4 airbase near Palmyra.

Casualties were reported after the attacks in Damascus and Hama, with Israeli drones still hovering above the cities. Israeli army radio reported that the “primary goal” of the late-night blitz was to "send a warning to Turkish President Erdogan."

The claim by the army-run Israeli outlet comes on the heels of reports that Ankara is preparing to take control of the Tiyas Air Base in Syria’s central governorate of Homs, also known as the T4 airbase.

“Turkey has begun moving to take control of the T4 air base, located near Palmyra in central Syria. A Hisar-type air defense system will be deployed to T4 to provide air cover for the base. Once the system is in place, the base will be reconstructed and expanded with necessary facilities. Ankara also plans to deploy surveillance and armed drones, including those with extended strike capabilities,” UK-based Middle East Eye (MEE) revealed on Tuesday.

Turkiye reportedly plans to equip the T4 airbase with a “complex defense system” with short, medium, and long-range capabilities against jets, drones, and missiles.

In March, Turkish daily Turkiye reported that Ankara is planning to establish two new military bases in Syria to train the new Syrian armed forces. 

According to the report, the Turkish military will train the Syrian army and pilots to establish an air force. The tentative agreement stipulates that Ankara will house 50 F-16 warplanes at the two new bases until the Syrian Air Force is operational and completed.
Tel Aviv bombed the T4 airbase twice in recent weeks, claiming it destroyed “strategic military capabilities.”

In the hours after former Al-Qaeda commanders seized power in Damascus in a Turkish and Gulf-backed coup last December, Israel bombed Syria hundreds of times, destroying most of the country's military assets.

Tel Aviv has also expanded its illegal occupation of large swathes of southern Syria, announcing plans to remain there indefinitely.

Coinciding with Tuesday's escalation, local sources reported an Israeli incursion of armored vehicles into the Al-Jabaliya Dam forest in the western Deraa countryside.

"Any significant Turkish military presence, especially in strategic locations like Palmyra, could be perceived as a threat to Israeli security interests,” an unnamed senior official in the Israeli army told The War Zone last week.

“Personally, I believe we are closer to a conflict, given the emergence of a radical jihadist regime in Syria and the high likelihood that Erdogan, facing concerns over his regime’s stability, might choose escalation despite conflicting interests,” adding, “It could become a ‘do or die’ scenario for him.”