Behind the Israeli strikes on Syria
TEHRAN- The Israeli regime has carried out an air attack on Syria’s Damascus International Airport and other positions south of the capital, killing five soldiers and causing material damage, the Syrian ministry of defense said on Saturday.
Syrian air defenses intercepted the raid and managed to down most of the missiles.
In a statement, a Syrian military source said that "at 12:45 am today, Saturday, the Israeli enemy carried out an air aggression with missiles from the northeastern direction of lake Tiberias, targeting Damascus International Airport and some points south of the city of Damascus."
The Israeli attacks are no longer a surprise for Damascus, as Syrian military experts are now analyzing the movement of enemy reconnaissance aircraft, anticipating the attacks, and are said to be preparing for them before they take place.
Israel has frequently sought to weaken Syria as soon as the country's battle against Daesh terrorists begins to swing in favor of the government.
At the height of Damascus’ fight against terrorism, Israel laid back from directly intervening in the war, opting instead to support terrorist groups with weapons and field hospitals in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.
As it became more evident that Syria will emerge victorious and relative calm returned to most of the Arab countries, the Israeli regime has been trying to shatter that security by targeting the country's military.
It is no secret that Israel has a strong desire to see the end of the Syrian government which, for decades now, has been a staunch supporter of Palestinian and Lebanese resistance groups who have battled Israel on numerous occasions with Syrian weapons.
Israel claims it is striking Iranian military targets and preventing the supply of weapons from Iran to Hezbollah. Nothing can be further from the truth as Iran's military presence in Syria is limited to an advisory role and no arms bound for Lebanon's Hezbollah have been touched.
To get an idea of what the Israeli regime is striking at the beginning of this month, the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria linked to the Russian Ministry of Defense revealed that eight Israeli F-16 fighters attacked Aleppo and Damascus.
The deputy head of the Russian Center for the Reconciliation of the Warring Parties in Syria, Major General Oleg Egorov, said the Israeli attack resulted in the injury of five Syrian soldiers, the destruction of the antenna for the Syrian air defense system the S-125, and two warehouses of military equipment, as well as the damage of a non-functioning runway at al-Nairab military airport in Syria's Aleppo.
They are all Syrian military targets, which Damascus says is a war crime in its letters to the United Nations, that entails the international body to condemn the Israeli aggression.
So far, Syria has taken the diplomatic route. So, it can't be blamed for destabilizing the region if it decides to pursue a military response. This month, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad warned that "Israel is playing with fire" and "exposing the security and military situation in the region to an explosion."
Mekdad added that "Syria will not remain silent in the face of Israeli aggression, and the Israelis will pay the price, sooner or later."
He stressed, "Syria has and will stand firm, and will not retreat from its positions," noting that "the Israeli enemy should not bet or miscalculate, and be under the illusion that Syria will change its positions."
The top Syrian official held the United States and Western countries responsible for "encouraging Israel to persist in aggression and threatening peace and security in the region and the world."
The U.S. plays a major role by giving Israel the green light to strike Syrian positions. When the policy of Washington towards this region is looked at closer, the American backing for Israel to attack Syria becomes evident.
Taking into consideration the last visit by an American President to West Asia whilst Syria was absent from most of the public U.S. statements related to the visit of Joe Biden, the country was strongly present behind every word.
All the talk was about Israel, supporting Israel, its integration into the region, and about Iran and the need to confront it, the truce in Yemen, and the energy crisis related to the Ukraine war. Syria is at the heart of all of this even when it is absent from the official language.
Among the most prominent of America's priorities in West Asia is weaking the resistance towards Israel while integrating the regime into the region with the help of Arab states. Syria is among the last remaining Arab states that stand firmly opposed to this American vision.
After Hezbollah helped derail the new American project for the region in 2006, if there is another U.S. project for the region now it is certainly directed at Damascus, al-Quds, Beirut, Baghdad (the Popular Mobilization Units), Sana'a, and Tehran.
The U.S. military of course is already occupying parts of Syrian land, looting on an almost daily basis, the country's oil and gas as well as its wheat, while supporting separatist movements seeking to break up Syria. America is preventing Damascus from serving its people while still holding on to the hope of weakening the Arab country be dividing it.
Nevertheless, the Syrians realize that they are still a big target for this U.S. administration. While Washington is shipping advanced weapons to Israeli forces with the sole aim of further destabilizing the region, there is a major eye on the Syrian, Lebanese and Palestinian shores, which store large quantities of gas that can be the fastest lifeline for the energy-starved West.
Also taking into consideration, the American Caesar Act and the idea is for Syrians to starve, live in poverty and then accept the conditions of the hegemonic war-mongering powers of ignorance.
The Caesar Act is officially aimed at preventing support towards the Syrian government's reconstruction efforts in the aftermath of years of war. However, it has affected the supply of humanitarian aid toward Syria. Unofficially, the move is aimed at crippling the country and preventing it from standing on its two feet.
The world has shown, over the years, two sides of the Arab region and West Asia; the weak submissive side that takes orders from America, and the side of strength, which is resistance and independence.
By defeating multiple American-led plots to destabilize the country, including the large threat of terrorism, Syria has proven it is a freedom-seeking nation that its people carved out into the skies with their blood.
One of the clearest signs that Syria has already defeated the goals of enemies is the change in position by many in the region and the growing calls to return representatives of the government to the Arab League.
Damascus has managed to display the correct willpower to thwart American plans in the country and the broader region, through which Washington is trying to recoup some losses in the face of regional economic gains made by Russia and China.
Syria will emerge victorious with its allies, because it is the most prepared for any war and has shown it possesses the most enduring capability to fight.