Syria condemns Israeli strikes on Abu al-Duhur airbase, calls for UN action

On August 18, 2026, Israel launched eight airstrikes on the Abu al-Duhur airbase in northwestern Syria, damaging rebuilt runways but causing no casualties. Israel claimed the strike targeted a Turkish military buildup, which Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani and Turkish officials strongly denied. US Ambassador Tom Barrack condemned the strikes as an unnecessary escalation and proposed a trilateral deconfliction mechanism. Tensions escalated further on August 22, 2026, when an Israeli drone strike targeted a vehicle in Beit Jinn.

Abu al-Duhur airbase strikes

• ▪The Abu al-Duhur airbase has been out of service as a dedicated military base for over a decade and is currently used as a training center for Syria's new army.
• ▪The August 18, 2026 Israeli airstrikes on the Abu al-Duhur airbase damaged rebuilt runways and infrastructure but caused no casualties.
• ▪Israel launched eight airstrikes targeting the runway and storage facilities of the Abu al-Duhur airbase in northwestern Syria's Idlib province early on August 18, 2026.

Turkish-Syrian military cooperation dispute

• ▪The Republic of Turkiye's Directorate of Communications rejected the Israeli allegations, stating they were intended to legitimize unlawful airstrikes targeting Syrian sovereignty.
• ▪Israel told the Trump administration that the August 18, 2026 strike on the Abu al-Duhur airbase aimed to prevent a Turkish military buildup at the facility.
• ▪Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani acknowledged Turkish military officers visited the Abu al-Duhur airbase days before the strike as part of ongoing military training cooperation.
• ▪Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani stated that Syria was not working with Turkey to establish a permanent Turkish military presence or deploy Turkish forces at the Abu al-Duhur airbase.

US deconfliction proposal

• ▪Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani stated that Syria remains interested in reaching a security agreement with Israel, noting that Trump-mediated negotiations had previously reached an unimplemented formula.
• ▪US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack condemned the August 18, 2026 Israeli strikes on the Abu al-Duhur airbase as an unnecessary escalation and suggested creating a trilateral deconfliction mechanism.

Syrian UN action demands

• ▪Syria's Foreign Ministry condemned the Abu al-Duhur airbase strikes as an unjustified act of aggression and urged the United Nations Security Council to take a firm position against Israeli violations.
• ▪Turkey strongly condemned the Israeli airstrikes on the Abu al-Duhur airbase and called on the international community to take a decisive stance to end Israel's escalating aggression.

Post-Assad Israeli-Syrian tensions

• ▪Following the December 2024 ouster of Bashar al-Assad, Israel declared the 1974 disengagement agreement collapsed and deployed troops into the United Nations-patrolled buffer zone and Mount Hermon.
• ▪Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Israel would not allow steps that strengthen Syria's military capabilities in ways that threaten Israel.

Israeli drone strike Beit Jinn

• ▪Syria's Foreign Ministry condemned an Israeli drone strike on a civilian vehicle in the town of Beit Jinn in the western Damascus countryside on August 22, 2026.
• ▪The Israeli army claimed that the individual targeted in the August 22, 2026 drone strike in Beit Jinn posed an immediate threat to its forces operating in the area.