From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, December 10, 2024
IDF: We struck 320 Syria targets since Assad’s fall, taking out over 70% of army’s capabilities
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The Israeli military says it carried out strikes against 320 “strategic targets” in Syria since the fall of the Assad regime over the weekend, destroying advanced weaponry Israel fears could fall into the hands of hostile elements, including Hezbollah.
The name of the operation to destroy the former Assad regime army’s weapons is dubbed “Bashan Arrow” within the military, after the biblical name for the region in the Golan Heights and southern Syria.
The military estimates that it has taken out over 70% of the former Assad regime’s strategic military capabilities.
The strikes began late Saturday, first taking out Syrian air defenses to give the Israeli Air Force more freedom.
According to the IDF, the 320 targets were struck across all of Syria, from Damascus to Tartus.
The targets destroyed in the strikes included Syrian air defense systems, missile depots, manufacturing facilities, drones, helicopters, fighter jets, tanks, radars, navy vessels and more, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
The Syrian navy vessels were destroyed last night in a large-scale operation carried out by the Israeli Navy.
The military says the missile depots destroyed in the strikes included long-range projectiles, Scud missiles, cruise missiles, coast-to-sea missiles, and others.
The IDF also targeted several chemical weapons sites in Syria during the waves of strikes, Israeli officials have said.
Following the fall of the Assad regime, the IDF has said that it is tracking advanced weapons in Syria and working to prevent them from reaching Hezbollah or any other hostile force that could threaten Israel.
Meanwhile, the IDF says it continues to be deployed to the buffer zone between Israel and Syria in the Golan Heights, on the Syrian side of the border, as part of Operation Bashan Arrow.
The IDF has stressed that its deployment to the buffer zone is a defensive and temporary measure amid the chaos in the country following the fall of the Assad regime, but it may end up staying there for a long time depending on the developments.
The military says it will not get directly involved in incidents in Syria and it is only carrying out defensive operations.
