• Israel’s campaign in Syria since 2024 features a seismic bomb, airstrikes, and a demilitarization demand—condemned as sovereignty violations.
• Jaramana’s Druze face Israel’s hollow “protection” claim amid ongoing land seizures.
Since Bashar al-Assad’s regime fell on December 8, 2024, Israel has launched an unrelenting campaign of military aggression in Syria, occupying territory, unleashing devastating airstrikes, and issuing audacious demands under the guise of “security” and “minority protection.” From a bomb so powerful it triggered earthquake readings to a dictate for southern Syria’s “complete demilitarization,” Israel’s actions reveal a pattern of opportunism that defies reason and mocks Syrian sovereignty. As of March 2, 2025, its latest target is Jaramana near Damascus, cementing a trajectory of domination met with fierce defiance from Syrians and global condemnation.
A Power Vacuum and Immediate Aggression
The overthrow of Assad by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) forces left Syria vulnerable, and Israel pounced. On December 8, 2024, Israeli troops crossed into the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) buffer zone between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, nullifying the 1974 disengagement agreement. Operation Arrow of Bashan followed, a relentless aerial and naval assault that obliterated 70-80% of Syria’s military infrastructure—airfields, naval assets, and alleged chemical weapons sites—in 48 hours. By December 25, Israeli soldiers fired on protesters in Quneitra Governorate, and on December 30, they entered Madinat al-Baath to ransack administrative offices.
The Earthquake Bomb: December 15, 2024
On December 15, 2024, Israel escalated its onslaught with an airstrike near Tartus in northwestern Syria, targeting a munitions depot. The explosion was catastrophic—a towering mushroom cloud erupted, registering as a 3.0-magnitude earthquake on seismic sensors, shattering windows in Tartus, and snapping trees near the blast site. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights labeled it the heaviest strike in Syria’s coastal region since 2012, a stark display of Israel’s willingness to wield overwhelming force against a nation in disarray.
Formalizing Occupation
By January, Israel’s intentions hardened into a policy of permanent control:
• January 9: Israel announced a 15-kilometer “zone of control” and a 60-kilometer “sphere of influence” inside Syria, signaling an enduring presence.
• January 15: An airstrike in Quneitra killed two HTS fighters and a local mayor, marking Israel’s first direct attack on the new Syrian administration’s personnel.
• January 31: Fighting erupted in Trinjeh as pro-Assad rebels struck Israeli positions, with the Syrian Popular Resistance claiming damage, though the IDF denied losses.
These moves expose a strategy of domination, exploiting Syria’s fragility to redraw its borders under a pretext of self-defense.
February 2025: Entrenchment and Escalation
February saw Israel deepen its grip:
• February 2: Military outposts emerged near Jubata al-Khashab, with Israeli officials pushing for more settlement in the Golan Heights, illegally held since 1967.
• February 11: Israel Army Radio confirmed the occupation would persist through 2025, contradicting earlier assurances of temporariness.
• February 23: The IDF acknowledged nine new army posts, including two on Mount Hermon, solidifying its foothold on Syrian soil.
February 25-26: Israel unleashed a punishing wave of airstrikes on Kiswa, Deraa, and Damascus, following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s February 23 demand for the “complete demilitarization” of southern Syria. The February 25 barrage began late at night, with warplanes striking military bases in Kiswa, 12 miles southwest of Damascus, linked to Syria’s First Division. Residents reported aircraft roaring overhead and explosions rocking the capital’s outskirts. On February 26, the assault extended to Deraa, targeting additional sites, though casualty details remain scarce.
Netanyahu’s demand, reiterated by Defence Minister Israel Katz, called for the removal of all military presence—HTS or otherwise—from Quneitra, Deraa, and Suweida provinces. Katz claimed the strikes were a “vigorous” response to Syrian forces’ “first attempt” to reassert control, a vague assertion lacking evidence of any threat to Israel. No state possesses the legal or moral authority to invade another, occupy its territory, and then insist upon its disarmament—yet Israel pursues this course with striking audacity.
Syrians rejected this dictate outright. On February 25, the National Dialogue Conference in Damascus condemned Israel’s actions as a “flagrant violation” of sovereignty, demanding an “immediate and unconditional withdrawal.” Protests flared in Sweida, Deraa, Quneitra, and Damascus, with voices like Firas Al-Haqbani proclaiming, “Jabal al-Arab, Hauran Plain, and Quneitra belong to Syrians loyal to Syria alone.” Demonstrators outside the UN office in Damascus waved flags and denounced Netanyahu’s “provocative statements.”
Iran and Jordan joined the chorus of condemnation, with Iran citing the UN Charter and Jordan’s King Abdullah decrying Israel during a February 26 visit from Sharaa. The Druze community, often invoked by Israel, rebuffed the narrative, with the Suwayda Military Council affirming allegiance to Syria.
Israel’s claim of “security” is a sham. HTS and the transitional government, focused on internal stability, pose no credible threat. The real aim is to leave Syria defenseless, unable to resist further incursions or challenge the Golan’s occupation—a colonial power play masquerading as protection.
March 2025: Jaramana and a Cynical Pretext
On March 2, 2025, Israel targeted Jaramana, a Druze-majority city near Damascus. Katz claimed Syrian forces were “attacking” it, referencing local resistance to security personnel that left one dead and nine injured. Framing Israel as the Druze’s “protector” while occupying southern Syria is a grotesque distortion—an intruder claiming victimhood as the occupied fight back.
A Legacy of Opportunism
Israel’s playbook is clear: the Golan Heights, seized in 1967 and annexed in 1981 despite global censure, set the precedent. The Tartus bomb, buffer zone takeover, demilitarization demand, and Jaramana ploy are steps to dismantle Syria’s defenses and dictate its fate. Ahmed al-Sharaa has denounced these moves, though Syria’s exhaustion limits its response.
Reframing Reality: An Insult to Reason
Israel’s logic defies belief. No country would be granted the right to invade another simply because its citizens dislike their neighbors—yet Israel asserts this privilege under the banner of “security.” When Syrian forces act within their borders, Israel labels it an attack warranting intervention, while its own occupation of Syrian land is cast as defensive. Katz’s Jaramana narrative and Netanyahu’s demilitarization edict invert reality: an aggressor with bombs and bases casts itself as a defender. Imagine a foreign power occupying Texas, bombing Houston, and demanding the U.S. disarm its south—all while claiming it’s for “security.” The outrage is universal.
Syrians reject this interference. Protests and Druze defiance signal a demand for autonomy, not Israeli domination.
