How can Israel attack Syria?

An air attack killed 13 people in Damascus on Tuesday evening, with Syrian officials laying the blame on Israel.

Israel did not take credit for every attack but has admitted to carrying out hundreds of raids on targets in Syria.

Here’s a brief explainer on the dynamic between Syria and Israel over the last year:

Why did nobody hear about this?

As Israel’s military continues its war on Gaza, Lebanon, the occupied West Bank and Yemen, the attacks on Syria have flown somewhat under the radar.

Ostensibly an ally of the Iranian regime and part of the larger “axis of resistance”, the Syrian regime led by Bashar al-Assad has been conspicuously quiet since the war on Gaza began last October.

Despite this, Israel has attacked Syrian territory several times over the last year.

How many times did Israel bomb Syria in the last year?

More than 220 times since last October, according to NGO Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED), which aggregates conflict data.

The attacks came via air raids and artillery attacks.

At least 104 of those attacks – which have killed at least 296 people – have been since January, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).

Israel has hit weapons depots, vehicles, and Iran-backed groups’ headquarters.

The most significant attack was in April when Israeli fighter jets hit the Iranian consular building in Syria’s capital Damascus, killing seven members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Among the dead were two generals who led the elite Quds Force in Syria and Lebanon.

How did Syria respond?

The Syrian authorities have denounced Israeli attacks.

Some rockets have been fired at Israel from Syria, which Israel claims are mostly by Iranian-backed groups.

In October 2023, the Israeli military hit Syrian military targets but did not accuse the Syrian military of having fired rockets.

As Israel expanded its war into Lebanon, and resistance groups from Iraq and Yemen got involved, Syria largely remained quiet.

Despite the fact that such attacks are a clear violation of a nation’s sovereignty, there has been little to no response from the international community.

Arab countries have condemned Israel’s attacks on Syria’s sovereignty in international fora, as has the League of Arab States.

Russia has also condemned the attacks, with Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova saying Tuesday’s attack was a “gross violation of Syria’s sovereignty”, adding: “It is outrageous that such actions have become a routine practice applied to Syria, Lebanon, and the Gaza Strip.”

China has also condemned Israel’s attack on Iran’s consular building, which under international law violates the sovereignty of two countries.

Beijing’s statement said: “The security of diplomatic institutions cannot be violated.”

How can Israel violate another country’s sovereignty like this?

Israel unilaterally claims it is hitting Iranian or Iran-linked targets in Syria, apparently taking that as a reasonable explanation for its actions.

Furthermore, the United States has also attacked locations in Syria over the years, claiming to be targeting a range of “Iran-linked” places and people.

Israel has made statements to the effect that it will continue striking countries and entities in the region, based on its own evaluation of who it sees as an “enemy”.

Did these attacks start in October 2023?

No. The Israeli military has been hitting targets in Syria for decades, with a notable increase since 2011.

In 2017, Israel further escalated its attacks on Syria, with the latest, most notable escalation coming after October 7, 2023.