Katz: Damascus strike is a warning to Syrian leader not to harm the Druze

Defense Minister Israel Katz says the overnight Israeli airstrike near the presidential palace in Damascus is a “clear warning to the Syrian regime.”

“When [Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa] wakes up in the morning and sees the results of the Israeli Air Force fighter jets strike, he understands that Israel is determined to prevent harm to the Druze in Syria,” he says.

“It is his duty to protect the Druze in the suburbs of Damascus from attacks by jihadist rioters and to enable the hundreds of thousands of Druze in Sweida and Jabal al-Druze to defend themselves on their own, and not to send jihadist forces into the villages,” Katz says.

“It is our duty to protect the Druze in Syria from harm, for the sake of our Druze brothers in Israel, their loyalty to the state, and their immense contribution to Israel’s security,” he adds.