Israel bombs Syrian army HQ; 21 killed at Gaza aid site

Netanyahu appears in Tel Aviv District Court over corruption trial
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has appeared before the Tel Aviv District Court to continue his testimony during an ongoing corruption trial.

Netanyahu is in court on charges in three cases, all of which he denies, including receiving expensive gifts in exchange for favours and alleged negotiations with the publisher of the Israeli news outlet Yedioth Ahronoth, as well as the former owner of the Walla news site, regarding positive media coverage.

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, who was in attendance, said the hearing would be “interesting to witness”.

“President [Donald] Trump has made his position clear; this is personal for him. He considers Netanyahu a friend. I would say it’s extraordinary that the prime minister is on trial during wartime and during negotiations over hostages,” he said.

Last month, Trump called for the trial against Netanyahu to be dismissed, referring to it as a “ridiculous witch hunt”.Chaotic scenes at the Syria-Israeli border
The Israeli army says it identified dozens of people who tried to enter Israeli territory from Syria. It also said a number of Israeli citizens crossed the border into the Majdal Shams area in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Israeli troops “continue to monitor developments in readiness for defence and various scenarios”, it added.Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 58,573 Palestinians since October 2023
Since the war on Gaza began on October 7, 2023, Israeli attacks on the enclave have killed 58,573 people and wounded 139,607, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

In the latest 24-hour reporting period, 94 people have been killed and 252 injured.

Since March 18 when Israel broke the January ceasefire, at least 7,750 Palestinians have been killed and 27,566 have been wounded.Israel looking ‘to export the Lebanon model to Syria’
Rob Geist Pinfold, a lecturer in international security at King’s College London, says Israel’s motivation since the fall of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in December has been to keep Syria unstable and governed by a weak central government.

“Basically to export the Lebanon model to Syria,” he told Al Jazeera.

“That looked like it could change. The US under Trump, as we saw not long ago, rescinded sanctions against the Syrian regime. Israel didn’t want them to do that, but Israel was nudged by the US and other actors into a more conciliatory position.”

However, Israel is now “reverting to form”, Geist Pinfold noted.

“It had a chance to pursue a different paradigm of either normalisation or at least more cooperation and dialogue with the Syrian government. It seems to have chosen military hegemony through supporting one specific proxy group, this Druze militia based in Suwayda.”

Geist Pinfold also said the attack on Damascus appeared “performative” but warned it could quickly escalate into something bigger.

“We are very, very close to Israel launching more prolonged, more direct and more dangerous and damaging strikes throughout Syria.”What is going on in Syria?
The day started with reports of fighting between Druze armed groups and government forces in the Druze-majority city of Suwayda in southern Syria.
The fighting followed the collapse of a ceasefire agreed between the two sides on Tuesday after days of clashes.
Ministry officials blamed outlawed groups for breaking the truce and attacking government soldiers, who they said were responding to fire while taking into account rules of engagement to protect civilians.
Israel, which said it is acting to protect the Druze community in Syria, struck Suwayda, saying it was prepared for “various scenarios”. According to Syrian state media, Israeli drones targeting the area caused civilian casualties.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz warned the Syrian government to leave the Druze alone and withdraw its forces from Suwayda or Israel would ramp up its attacks.
Meanwhile, in Damascus, the Israeli army bombed the entrance gate of the Syrian army’s headquarters.
An Al Jazeera correspondent in the Syrian capital reported multiple drones circling in the sky as well as gunfire from the Defence Ministry towards the drones.
The Israeli army also said it was sending reinforcements to the security fence on the border with Syria.‘A very volatile situation’ as Israel escalates attacks on Syria
We’ve spoken to Rob Geist Pinfold, a lecturer in international security at King’s College London, about the latest developments in Syria and what has gone wrong since the declaration of a ceasefire in Suwayda on Tuesday.

Here’s what he said:

“We were not just talking about a ceasefire internally within Syria, but we were also told that the US and Israel had reached an agreement for Israeli strikes within Syria to stop at least during nightfall.

“That did not happen because of the events on the ground in Suwayda.

“So what happened here is there is one specific Druze militia led by a cleric who has had relations with Israel in the past and has been tied to the al-Assad regime in the past as well.

“He along with another group of Druze clerics released a statement saying that they welcomed the ceasefire. Later on, he basically said that he had nothing to do with this statement, that it was imposed on him and that he rejects it entirely – and his group began fighting again.

“And when they began fighting again, Israel stepped up its strikes once more, supposedly to protect the Druze community but more likely here to coordinate and defend this one specific Druze militia with whom Israel has now deepening and more extensive ties since the fall of the al-Assad regime.

“So this is a very volatile situation. This has not stayed just in Suwayda. It has escalated to Damascus with Israeli strikes on Syrian government military targets.

“It looks like Israel and Syria are descending very quickly towards the paradigm of open and direct confrontation, which is a far cry from where we were a week ago when there was talk of normalisation or at least a ceasefire agreement between Israel and the al-Sharaa regime in Damascus.”Israeli army to reinforce border with Syria
The Israeli army says it will send reinforcements to the security fence on the border with Syria.

The statement comes as Israel has threatened to continue targeting Syrian forces if they do not withdraw from Suwayda province in southern Syria.

Fighting between Syrian government forces and Druze armed groups continued in Suwayda today after a ceasefire agreed on Tuesday collapsed.

Syria’s Defence Ministry ‘struck twice by Israeli drones’
In the last few minutes, we’ve heard multiple drones circling above us, … and there has been some gunfire from the ministry’s defences towards these drones.

This goes to show that the situation is escalating as Israeli strikes have now reached the heart of Damascus.Israel attacks Syrian army headquarters in Damascus
The Israeli army says it has bombed the entrance gate of the Syrian army’s headquarters in Damascus.

The military’s statement comes soon after the sound of an explosion was heard in the Syrian capital.

The Israeli military separately said it was attacking the Druze-majority city of Suwayda in Syria’s south, adding that it was prepared “for various scenarios”.

Earlier, the Syrian state news agency said Israeli drones had targeted the city, causing civilian casualties.

The attacks came after fighting in Suwayda between armed groups and government forces resumed today despite a ceasefire agreed on Tuesday.