In warning to Turkey, Israel hits strategic targets in Syria amid rising tensions

Israel launched a question of airstrikes connected Syrian subject airfields this week, successful what officials confirmed to Fox News Digital was "intended to nonstop a wide connection to Turkey not to interfere with Israeli aerial operations successful Syrian airspace." 

The escalation marks a turning constituent successful Jerusalem’s stance toward Ankara, arsenic Turkey attempts to grow its subject beingness successful Syria amid determination instability.

The Israeli Defense Forces struck strategical assets astatine some the Hama subject airdrome and the T-4 airbase, including runways, substance retention sites, radar systems and weapons caches. The strikes travel weeks of quality gathering by the Israeli aerial force, which tracked subject assets successful the targeted bases. 

The airbases, which had been nether the power of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime, are present reportedly being eyed by Turkey for expanded usage and the deployment of aerial defence systems.

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Chief of the General Staff LTG Eyal Zamir visited and conducted a situational appraisal successful the Area of Separation successful Syria. (IDF)

Turkey has signaled increasing ambitions successful Syria. Reports from Middle East Eye bespeak that Turkish forces person begun moves to instrumentality power of the T-4 basal and are readying to instal aerial defence systems there. Since the autumn of Assad successful December, Ankara has accelerated negotiations with Syria’s interim authorities implicit a imaginable defence pact.

Turkey’s Foreign Ministry reacted sharply to the Israeli strikes, labeling Israel’s authorities arsenic "racist and fundamentalist," accusing it of expansionist ambitions. "Israel’s attacks successful Syria, without immoderate provocation, are inconceivable and bespeak a argumentation that thrives connected conflict," a ministry spokesperson said. The connection further condemned Israel’s subject operations arsenic a menace to determination security. 

Fox News Digital requests for remark to the Turkish embassy spokesperson successful Washington, D.C., were not returned.

Dr. Sinan Ciddi, a Turkey adept astatine the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is attempting to capitalize connected the determination vacuum near by Russia and Iran.

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan observes a subject workout successful Izmir, Turkey, connected June 9, 2022. (Photo by Xinhua via Getty Images)

"Erdogan is trying to reignite Turkey’s power successful the portion arsenic a benignant of neo-Ottoman power," said Ciddi. "He sees Iran’s proxies weakened, Russia overstretched, and is positioning Turkey to predominate the portion — peculiarly done subject footholds similar the airbases."

Ciddi said Erdogan’s agelong crippled includes projecting powerfulness successful Syria, currying favour with the caller authorities successful Damascus and convincing the U.S. to assistance Turkey entree to F-35 combatant jets successful speech for "managing" Syria.

"Erdogan wants to spell to Trump and say, ‘I’m the large feline here. Leave Syria to me, conscionable springiness maine the F-35s,’" Ciddi said. "But Israel sees this arsenic a nonstop threat. Bombing the T-4 runway was a wide message: you’re not invited here."

The Turkish leader’s caller inflammatory rhetoric — including prayers for the demolition of Israel during a Ramadan work — has further alarmed Israeli and American observers.

During a caller webinar hosted by the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA), erstwhile U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Eric Edelman called for urgent diplomatic intervention.

Security forces loyal to the interim Syrian authorities thrust successful the backmost of a conveyance moving on a roadworthy successful Syria's occidental metropolis of Latakia connected March 9, 2025. (OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images)

"There ought to beryllium immoderate quiescent discussions with Turkey astir toning down the rhetoric astir Israel — threats to destruct it, whether coming from the president oregon his lad astatine rallies," said Edelman. "There needs to beryllium immoderate benignant of effort to deconflict implicit Syrian airspace."

Edelman besides warned that renewed F-35 income to Turkey indispensable travel with conditions: "If Turkey is really going to person the F-35, determination has to beryllium immoderate precise wide understandings astir wherever they tin usage it."

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Alan Makovsky, JINSA Eastern Mediterranean Policy Project subordinate said, "We tin ne'er presume statements similar this are conscionable rhetoric," adding, "Erdogan has alluded successful the past to being capable to ‘come abruptly 1 night’ — we person to instrumentality that seriously."

Inside Israel, officials are intimately watching Turkey’s moves successful Syria. Avner Golov, vice president of Mind Israel, emphasized that the existent situation reflects a deeper ideological threat.

"Iran is intelligibly the caput of the extremist camp, but Erdogan is trying to presumption himself arsenic the 2nd caput — and he’s nary little unsafe successful presumption of potential," helium said. "He doesn’t usage proxies the aforesaid mode Iran does. He intervenes directly, including wrong Israel done Palestinian citizens and governmental activism."

An Israeli Air Force F-35 Lightning II combatant craft during an aerial amusement successful Tel Aviv connected April 26, 2023. (JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

"Israel has diplomatic ties with Turkey, but Erdogan keeps blocking meaningful information practice successful NATO" Golov added. "Now that Turkey is moving southbound into Syria, we [Israel] request to escalate the rules of engagement. We can’t let Turkey to make a long-range aerial defence umbrella connected our border."

Golov said the existent medication needs to recognize that Erdogan's ambitions spell beyond Syria. "He wants to go a patron state, to power the skies, and to forestall Israeli operations by claiming we’re violating Syrian sovereignty. But it’s not astir sovereignty — it’s astir powerfulness and shaping the caller Middle East successful Muslim Brotherhood colors."

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On the caller protests against the jailing of the politician of Istanbul, Ciddi said, "We’ve seen a large situation to Erdogan with these rising nationalist protests — astir apt the biggest since the 2013 Gezi protests … jailing an absorption campaigner earlier they adjacent tally is simply a wide motion of weakness. Erdogan doesn’t attraction astir planetary disapproval oregon economical fallout — each helium cares astir is maintaining his regime. That’s not strength, it’s desperation."