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Once Again, Israel Helps Save the World in Syria
Top rebel commander Abu Mohammed al-Golani speaks to a crowd at Ummayad Mosque in Damascus, after Syrian rebels announced that they have ousted President Bashar al-Assad, Syria, Dec. 8, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Hassano
The Assad regime is gone. Sadynaya Prison is liberated, and the depth of the Assad family’s depravity is becoming clear.
While the West seems to hold out hope that the transition will lead to something better for the Syrian people, the saying in the Middle East goes, “The enemy of my enemy can also be my enemy.”
The incoming warlords are the HTS — a Sunni, ISIS-adjacent, Taliban-adjacent, Turkish armed and funded organization on the US and UK terrorist lists. If you Google them, the stories would be accompanied by graphic, hideous videos of revenge killings. I am choosing not to link to the horrific murders here, but you can find them online, and just know that they are a tiny fraction of what’s out there.
HTS leaders and militants said, upon entering Damascus, “This is the heart of the Abode of Islam. This is Damascus, the [land of] Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, the land of Islam … This is the camp of the Muslims. From here we are coming to Jerusalem. Be patient, oh people of Gaza. Say Allah Akbar!”
One fighter added: “Just like that, Allah willing, we will enter the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the Prophet’s Mosque [in Medina], and the Kaaba. We will enter these [mosques], Allah willing.”
In this context, Israel has offered the world a gift, decimating the Russian-Iranian arsenal Assad left behind before HTS can get its hands on it.
The first IDF strikes were on Syrian chemical weapons depots and “research facilities.” (You know, the ones President Obama declared 96 percent destroyed in 2014.) Then, according to @IDF on X:
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Israeli Navy missile ships struck the Al-Bayda and Latakia ports, where 15 Syrian naval vessels were docked. They took out dozens of sea-to-sea missiles with ranges of 80–190 km. Each missile carried significant explosive payloads posing threats to civilian and military maritime vessels in the area.
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The Air Force conducted more than 350 strikes on targets including anti-aircraft batteries, Syrian Air Force airfields, and dozens of weapons production sites, neutralizing Scud missiles, cruise missiles, surface-to-sea, surface-to-air and surface-to-surface missiles, UAVs, fighter jets, attack helicopters, radars, tanks, hangars, and more.
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The IDF conducted air strikes on 130 ground assets in Syria, including weapons depots, military structures, launchers, and firing positions.
No civilians or homes — or anything besides destructive weapons — were targeted.
An IDF Spokesman said that Israel has destroyed approximately 80% of Syrian strategic weapons. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights agreed, “Israeli airstrikes have destroyed Syria’s military assets… The attacks resulted in complete suspension of air-defenses and put all targeted positions out of service.”
Oh, and yes, Israel entered the 400 sq km UN Golan buffer zone after helping the UN force there repel a rebel attack.
The UN is furious. “This needs to stop,” special envoy for Syria, Geir Pederson, told reporters. As Syrian factions “attempt an orderly transition” to a new government, it is “extremely important that we don’t see any action from any international actor that destroys the possibility for this transition in Syria to take place,” he added.
If UN officials think Abu Mohammed al-Golani, a “former”Al-Qaeda leader who claims to have recanted, should have access to chemical weapons and more, they are making the case for the demise of their institution.
Pederson said nothing about HTS-supporter Turkey, which has controlled more than 8,800 sq km of Syrian territory since 2018, and where last month it cut off water to one million people and this week escalated a bombing campaign against Syrian Kurds.
Where is the US in all this?
The Biden administration has been skeptical and derogatory about Israel’s military operations in Gaza and Lebanon. When Israel decimated Hezbollah — and eliminated the terrorists who killed 247 US Marines in the 1983 barracks bombing — White House Middle East czar Brett McGurk said, “We have disagreements with the Israelis on tactics and how you kind of measure escalation risk. It is a very concerning situation. … We want a diplomatic settlement…”
It’s a relief, then, to find that the US Central Command (CENTCOM) is working toward the future stability and security of Syria. CENTCOM — of which Israel is a member — conducted dozens of airstrikes on known ISIS camps and operatives in central Syria, announcing that the strikes were part of an ongoing mission to “disrupt, degrade and defeat ISIS.”
The US contribution is relatively small, but given the possibilities, it is welcome.
This all speaks to the larger regional issue. As the US prepares for a new administration — one which has shown its affinity for Israel and for regional security — the words of CENTCOM Commander Gen. Erik Kurilla, before October 7, 2023, are important.
According to the official statement: “The ability for our forces to work together is a key aspect of our combined efforts to support regional stability.” In the past 14 months, CENTCOM was instrumental in shooting down Iranian missiles aimed at Israel and responding to Houthi terror attacks in the Red Sea. Gen. Kurilla has been in Israel several times, including on the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attack.
Former paratrooper & Sandhurst senior lecturer Andrew Fox, who has been writing from Israel and Gaza regularly since October 7, noted, “The world really should buy Israel a beer.”
CENTCOM, too.
Shoshana Bryen is Senior Director of The Jewish Policy Center and Editor of inFOCUS Quarterly magazine.
The post Once Again, Israel Helps Save the World in Syria first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Vows to Press on with Offensive
Smoke rises following an Israeli strike, in Gaza City, August 24, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Israeli planes and tanks pounded the eastern and northern outskirts of Gaza City overnight Saturday to Sunday, destroying buildings and homes, residents said, as Israeli leaders vowed to press on with a planned offensive on the city.
Witnesses reported the sound of explosions non-stop overnight in the areas of Zeitoun and Shejaia, while tanks shelled houses and roads in the nearby Sabra neighborhood and several buildings were blown up in the northern town of Jabalia.
Fire lit the skies from the direction of the explosions, causing panic, prompting some families to stream out of the city. Others said they would prefer to die and not leave.
The Israeli military said on Sunday that its forces have returned to combat in the Jabalia area in recent days, to dismantle militant tunnels and strengthen control of the area.
It added that the operation there “enables the expansion of combat into additional areas and prevents Hamas terrorists from returning to operate in these areas.”
Israel approved a plan this month to seize control of Gaza City, describing it as the last bastion of Hamas. It is not expected to begin for a few weeks, leaving room for mediators Egypt and Qatar to try and resume ceasefire talks.
Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz on Sunday vowed to press on with the offensive on the city where famine has been declared, which has raised alarm abroad and objections at home. Katz has said that Gaza City will be razed unless Hamas agrees to end the war on Israel’s terms and release all hostages.
Hamas said in a statement on Sunday that Israel’s plan to take over Gaza City showed it wasn’t serious about a ceasefire.
It said a ceasefire agreement was “the only way to return the hostages,” holding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responsible for their lives.
The proposal on the table calls for a 60-day ceasefire and the release of 10 living hostages held in Gaza and of 18 bodies. In turn, Israel would release about 200 long-serving Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Once a temporary ceasefire begins, the proposal is for Hamas and Israel to begin negotiations on a permanent ceasefire that would include the return of the remaining hostages.
On Thursday, Netanyahu said that Israel would immediately resume negotiations for the release of all 50 hostages – of whom Israel believes around 20 are still living – and an end to the nearly two-year-old war but on terms acceptable to Israel.
‘HUNGRY AND AFRAID’
Around half of the enclave’s two million people currently live in Gaza City. A few thousand have already left, carrying their belongings on vehicles and rickshaws.
“I stopped counting the times I had to take my wife and three daughters and leave my home in Gaza City,” said Mohammad, 40, via a chat app. “No place is safe, but I can’t take the risk. If they suddenly begin the invasion, they will use heavy fire.”
Others said they will not leave, no matter what.
“We are not leaving, let them bomb us at home,” said Aya, 31, who has a family of eight, adding that they couldn’t afford to buy a tent or pay for the transportation, even if they did try to leave. “We are hungry, afraid and don’t have money.”
A global hunger monitor said on Friday that Gaza City and surrounding areas are officially suffering from famine that will likely spread. Israel has rejected the assessment and says it ignores steps it has taken since late July to increase aid.
The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led gunmen burst into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mainly civilians, and taking 251 hostages.
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Iran Signals Willingness to Scale Back Uranium Enrichment to Ease Tensions
Atomic symbol and USA and Iranian flags are seen in this illustration taken, September 8, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
i24 News – Iran may be prepared to significantly reduce its uranium enrichment levels in a bid to stave off renewed UN sanctions and limit the risk of further strikes by Israel and the United States, according to a report published Sunday in The Telegraph.
Citing Iranian sources, the paper said Tehran is considering lowering enrichment from 60% to 20%.
The move is reportedly being championed by Ali Larijani, the newly appointed secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, who is holding talks with regime leaders.
“Larijani is trying to convince the system to reduce the level of enrichment in order to avoid further war,” a senior Iranian official told the paper.
The proposal, however, faces stiff resistance from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which has long opposed concessions on the nuclear program. Still, the report suggests Iran’s leadership may be open to greater flexibility, including the possibility of reviving engagement with Western powers.
Last month, i24NEWS reported exclusively that a delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is expected to travel to Iran. The team of technical experts would seek to resume monitoring of nuclear sites, inspections that have been heavily restricted in recent years.
The development comes amid mounting regional tensions and could represent a critical turning point in the long-running nuclear standoff.
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Major Brush Fire Erupts Near Jerusalem, Evacuations Underway
A view of the new Tel Aviv-Jerusalem fast train seen over the HaArazim Valley (“Valley of Cedars”) just outside of Jerusalem, Sept. 25, 2018. Photo: Yossi Zamir/Flash90.
i24 News – A large brush fire broke out Sunday in the Cedars Valley area, near Route 1 and the Motza interchange, prompting an emergency response from Jerusalem district fire services. Several water-bombing planes were dispatched, and authorities have declared a “fire emergency.”
As a precaution, residents of Mevaseret Zion are being evacuated. Access to the town from Route 1 has already been blocked, and officials are weighing a full closure of the major highway.
Fire crews from the Ha’uma station are on site working to contain the flames, while motorists in the area are urged to heed traffic updates and follow instructions from emergency services.
Eight firefighting aircraft are currently operating above the blaze in support of ground teams. The fire comes amid one of the hottest, driest summers on record, with conditions fueling a series of destructive wildfires across the country.
Officials warn the situation remains critical, as the blaze threatens a vital transportation corridor leading into Jerusalem.