Syrian officials said Israeli aircraft carried out air raids early Tuesday morning on the Abu al-Zuhur military airport in northwest Syria [1].
The strikes target a strategic location in the eastern countryside of Idlib Governorate. While the facility is currently inactive, the escalation highlights ongoing tensions and the frequency of foreign military interventions within Syrian borders.
Syrian military sources said that the Israeli aircraft targeted the airport runway [1]. There are conflicting reports regarding the scale of the attack. Official Syrian statements and reporting from Al-Awsat and MSN indicate that eight raids were conducted [1], [2], [3]. However, other Syrian military sources cited by ElBalad reported four air raids [4].
Israeli officials have not issued a statement regarding the operation. ElBalad said that the source of the raids was initially unclear [4], though other official Syrian channels explicitly blamed Israel [1], [2].
Abu al-Zuhur is a significant military site, but it has been out of service for more than 10 years [1]. The airport was a key installation before the Syrian conflict shifted control of the region. Syrian officials said the strikes were part of a broader pattern of Israeli aggression against Syrian territory [2].
Local reports from the Idlib region confirmed the timing of the attacks as early Tuesday morning [4]. The raids occurred in an area where various factions have historically contested control, adding a layer of complexity to the security environment in the northwest [1].
“Israeli aircraft targeted the airport runway”
The targeting of a facility that has been defunct for over a decade suggests that the strikes may be intended to signal capability or disrupt specific logistics rather than destroy active military assets. Because the Abu al-Zuhur airport is located in Idlib—a region characterized by fragmented control—these raids underscore Israel's willingness to operate deep within Syrian territory to prevent the establishment of new military infrastructure or the presence of hostile actors.
