US condemns Israeli airstrikes on Syrian air base as regional tensions rise

The United States has condemned Israeli air strikes on a Syrian air base, labelling it an "unnecessary escalation" and insisting the new Syrian government is not the threat the Netanyahu government argues it is.

Syrian state television has reported eight Israeli airstrikes hit the Abu al-Duhur base in the north west of the country, not far and 70 kilometres from the Turkish border.

The Ekhbariya outlet reported the base's runway and storage facilities were hit, citing a Syrian military source.

The Israeli military has yet to comment.

In a statement, the Syrian foreign ministry condemned the attacks and described them as an "unjustified act of aggression, a flagrant violation of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and a dangerous escalation that threatens security and stability in the region".

It said the "Syrian state has exercised restraint and worked to consolidate stability and avoid escalation" with Israel, despite coming under repeated attacks since early December 2024, when the former Assad regime was toppled.

That sentiment was shared by the US Ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria and Iraq, Tom Barrack.

"The Al-Sharra government has neither adopted a predatory posture nor maintained proxy forces," he posted on X.

"It has, in fact, repeatedly indicated a preference for de-escalation with Israel.

"The United States has in the past, and will continue in the future, to host discussions to encourage diplomatic cadence over kinetic frustration for both nations."

Mr Barrack said countries should "prioritise logical discourse over further military incidents".

Benjamin Netanyahu's Israeli administration has expressed its deep concerns about the new Syrian government, led by former rebel leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa.

Mr Al-Sharaa, a former Al Qaeda commander, swept to power in December 2024 as his forces ended the five-decade long Assad family dictatorship.

While publicly stating he wants to unify the civil war-ravaged country, Israel has cited Mr Al-Sharaa's history and ties to extreme Islamist ideology to justify its own "security" measures against Syria.

This has included deploying Israeli forces into south-western Syria, beyond the border of the occupied Golan Heights, and launching strikes on some towns and cities in the area.

It has put Israel at odds with the United States, and particularly Donald Trump's White House, which has fostered deeper ties with the new Syrian government.

That has included lifting crippling economic sanctions against Syria, and even inviting the president to the White House — a move which would have been unthinkable just a few years ago, when Mr Al-Sharaa was subject of a US bounty.

In recent months, the Syrian government has tried to rebuild the country's air force — something Israel has seen as another threat to its own security.