Israeli fighter jets launched a series of airstrikes on Syria’s capital early Wednesday, targeting a defense ministry compound and striking near the presidential palace in one of the most intense bombardments of Damascus in recent memory.
The attacks came as Syria grapples with mounting internal unrest, particularly in the southern province of Sweida, where violent clashes have left more than 300 people dead in four days.
The Israeli military confirmed the strikes, saying they were a direct response to Syrian government deployments in Sweida, a region dominated by the Druse minority.
Israel has long pledged to protect that community, which shares religious ties with Israeli Druse citizens. Israeli officials warned further strikes could follow if Syrian troops do not withdraw from the area.
Syria’s health ministry reported at least one civilian killed and 18 wounded in the airstrikes. Local witnesses described scenes of panic in Damascus as missiles rained down on the city center.
“We were inside the ministry when the first airstrike hit,” said Abu Musab, a defense ministry employee. “Then a second strike followed.
Later, the aircraft came back and carried out four strikes in a row. There are still people trapped under the rubble.”
The strikes signal a sharp escalation in tensions between Israel and Syria, just months after Damascus saw a dramatic change in leadership.
President Ahmed al-Shara, a former Islamist rebel commander, overthrew longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad in December and has since attempted to stabilize a country battered by 14 years of civil war.
His government has begun forging ties with the U.S. and exploring cautious outreach to Israel, a stark shift from the Assad era, when Syria was aligned with Iran and hostile to Israel.
That fragile diplomatic thaw now appears to be under strain. The Israeli attack came just hours before a U.S.-brokered cease-fire took hold in Sweida, where government forces had been battling Druse militias following the killing of a Druse man by armed members of a Bedouin tribe.
Mistrust between the Druse and the central government runs deep, made worse by President al-Shara’s own past as a rebel leader with links to extremist groups.
Late Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that a cease-fire deal had been reached with local leaders and Syrian authorities.
The state news agency SANA confirmed that government troops began withdrawing from Sweida shortly after.
Despite the deal, the damage in Sweida is profound. Hospitals are overwhelmed, internet and power outages are widespread, and hundreds of families remain trapped in their homes.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights called the Sweida clashes the province’s deadliest in recent memory.
The resurgence of violence in Syria, both from internal divisions and cross-border strikes, highlights the monumental task facing al-Shara’s government.
The new president has pledged to unify the country and restore stability, but with old battle lines reemerging and new tensions erupting, that promise appears more distant than ever.