Syria has called for an end to Israeli air strikes that, she said, endanger military and civilian life, and the influential international trio of Russia, Iran and Turkey agree.
Newsweek recently reported on the dangers associated with several countries operating in overcrowded air spaces in Syria, where military and civilian aircraft face growing risks from the country’s civil conflict, which reaches its 10th anniversary next month.
Syria’s permanent mission to the United Nations said Israel’s semi-secret campaign of attacks on suspected Iranian-linked sites and Syrian air defense positions constitutes a violation of the postwar bilateral agreements between the two neighbors.
“The repeated Israeli attacks on Syrian sovereignty are not just a technical issue related to the security of civilian air traffic in Syrian airspace,” said the mission. Newsweek, “but rather an act of aggression that violates the 1974 ceasefire agreement, threatening the safety and protection of civilians and civil aviation.”
The mission also saw Israel’s air strategy as contrary to international law.
“These attacks also constitute a flagrant violation of the Chicago Conventions that guarantee the safety of civil aviation in the world, and a described hostile act condemned by the provisions of international law and the principles of the Charter of the United Nations,” said the mission. Newsweek. “Furthermore, such aggression shows disdain for the Security Council resolutions related to the situation in Syria, which affirm respect for Syria’s sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity.”
These four principles were emphasized on Friday during the last trilateral meeting of Russia, Iran and Turkey. The three countries represent the guarantors of a platform to resolve the conflict in Syria called the Astana process, in honor of the capital of Kazakhstan, which has since been renamed Nur-Sultan.
In a joint statement, Moscow, Tehran and Ankara “condemned the continued Israeli military attacks on Syria, in violation of international law and international humanitarian law and undermining the sovereignty of Syria and neighboring countries, as well as jeopardizing stability and security. in the region and called for their cessation. “
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The most recent round of Israeli attacks hit an air defense unit linked to Syria’s 4th Armored Division west of Damascus on Monday, a local source said. Newsweek.
This report was supported by the pro-opposition activist network of the Syrian Human Rights Observatory, based in the United Kingdom, which further claimed that Iranian rocket deposits were hit, killing up to 16 non-Syrian militiamen in two locations near the capital. .
The Syrian mission said that such attacks pose an unnecessary risk for civilians.
“Israel’s recent hostile and terrifying acts were not the first of its kind,” said the Syrian mission. “On several previous occasions, the Israeli Air Force used civilian aircraft as cover while attacking Syrian territories, employing civilian passengers as human shields, with total indifference to their feelings or lives.”
The attacks roughly coincided with an Israeli air exercise called “Galilee Rose”, which simulated a war on the country’s hostile northern borders with Syria and Lebanon, where a Hezbollah spokesman for the Lebanese Shiite Muslim movement Hezbollah said Newsweek last month his fighters remained prepared for any aggression.
“Naturally, no attack will be tolerated, and Hezbollah is in a constant state of preparedness to respond to any attack on Lebanon,” said the Hezbollah official at the time.
Israel accused Iran of sending personnel and recruiting partner groups like Hezbollah and other organizations as far away as Afghanistan and Pakistan to establish advanced bases of operation and transfer advanced ammunition to Syria.
“[The Syrian army] from the [Hezbollah] lots of space to do what they want, and that makes life a little uncomfortable, “said an Israeli security officer who deals with Syria Newsweek last month. “It is a big problem for us to decide who to attack and what to do.”
These forces operate in Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad, who has been fighting since 2011 against a rebel and jihadist rebellion. The United States joined regional partners in accusing Assad of human rights abuses and sponsored efforts to oust the longtime leader before turning his attention to fighting the ISIS militant group.
The Syrian Democratic Forces, supported by the United States, mainly Kurds, own almost a third of the country’s territory across the northeast, while Turkey remains the last major sponsor of the opposition and supports insurgent elements that oppose the Pentagon-backed faction on the border north.
However, most of the country, both in territory and in population, remains under the control of the central government, thanks to years of counter-offensives supported by Russia and Iran. Although Moscow and Tehran joined Ankara in the process of Astana, Washington and their changing objectives in the conflict have largely remained diplomatic.
But on the ground, about 900 American soldiers remain in the northeast, where they were tasked by former President Donald Trump to maintain control of the oil and gas sites after the defeat of the physical and self-styled ISIS caliphate – a campaign also carried out separately by the axis pro-government.
Israel Defense Forces
The joint statement by Russia, Iran and Turkey on Friday also addressed US operations here, saying that the three nations “rejected all attempts to create new realities on the ground, including illegitimate self-government initiatives, under the pretext of fighting the terrorism, and expressed their determination to stand against the separatist agendas in eastern Euphrates aimed at undermining Syria’s unity, as well as threatening the national security of neighboring countries. “
In addition, they “expressed concern in this regard about the increase in hostilities against civilians,” and “reaffirmed their opposition to the seizure and illegal transfer of oil revenues that should belong to the Syrian Arab Republic. “
Russia and its allies also operate in this northeast region. With this, the United States maintains a line of misconfiguration with Russia to avoid incidents in this part of the country.
But the United States rarely discuss Israeli operations in the country. A Pentagon spokesman said Newsweek last week, they “declined to comment on airspace over Western Syria”.
Despite being on opposite sides of the Syrian conflict, Israel maintains a line of distrust with Russia.
“We do have a conflict mechanism with the Russian military that facilitates our freedom of action, minimizes the risk of friction with Russian troops and promotes mutual security,” said an Israeli military officer. Newsweek Last week. “So far, it has been very effective and has withstood challenging circumstances in a very dense battle space.”