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Israel struck a Hamas terror cell in southern Syria and a command center of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terror group in Damascus this week, Israeli media reported.
The Hamas cell was struck by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday. The cell was planning to carry out terror attacks in the Israeli Golan Heights, Channel 12 News reported Wednesday evening.
On Thursday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed that a Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) target in Damascus had been struck. The IDF stated that the site was used for planning and coordinating terrorist activities against Israel.
“Wherever terrorist activity is organized against Israel, the leader of the extremist Islamic group, Jolani [Syria’s president al-Sharaa], will find the Air Force planes circling above him and attacking the terrorist targets. We will not allow Syria to become a threat to the State of Israel,” Katz stated.
לפני זמן קצר, מטוסי קרב של חיל האוויר, בהכוונת פיקוד הצפון ואגף המודיעין תקפו מפקדת טרור של ארגון הטרור גא״פ בשטח דמשק, ממנה תכננו וניהלו פעולות טרור של הארגון.
צה״ל לא יאפשר לארגוני טרור להתבסס בשטח סוריה ולפעול כנגד מדינת ישראל ויפעל בעוצמה כנגד כל התבססות שכזאת>> pic.twitter.com/SHrMbQCbgU
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 13, 2025
The Associated Press later cited a PIJ member who said an abandoned house of the group’s leader, Ziyad al-Nakhalah, had been struck. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that one person was killed in the strike.
The strikes came amid Israel’s increasing involvement in southern Syria.
On Thursday, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced the delivery of 10,000 aid packages to the Druze community in southern Syria, days after Katz said Israel would issue work permits for the Israeli Golan Heights to Syrian Druze.
Following the fall of the Assad regime and the takeover of the government by the Islamist terror group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the IDF to take precautions. He has since affirmed Israel’s intent to maintain all of southern Syria as a demilitarized zone.
Additionally, several Israeli leaders have reaffirmed that Israel will not permit any harm to the Druze community in the region, which is primarily concentrated in Suweida province, an area known as the “Druze Mountain.”
Reinforcing this message, Channel 12 reported this week that the Israeli Air Force scrambled fighter jets to conduct multiple low-altitude flights over southern Syria, signaling that Israel would not tolerate the presence of government troops in Druze areas.
Israel is reportedly maintaining close contact with Druze leaders, and a pilot program allowing Syrian Druze to work in Israel is expected to be launched next week.
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) March 12, 2025
The strike against the Hamas cell was part of a broader wave of airstrikes targeting weapons depots and infrastructure in southern Syria. The operation involved 22 fighter jets, which dropped over 60 munitions on dozens of targets across the region.
According to an IDF statement, the targets included radar systems and detection equipment used for aerial intelligence gathering, as well as headquarters and military sites housing weapons and equipment belonging to the former Assad regime.
“The presence of these assets in southern Syria poses a threat to the State of Israel and IDF operations. These targets were attacked to eliminate future threats,” the IDF stated.
Following the operation, Israel reportedly conveyed a stern message to the new regime in Damascus, warning that it “will not be immune” from retaliation if it allows terrorist activities against Israel.
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