Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has vowed a greater military escalation in southern Syria, asserting that Israel will not allow the Druze community to be harmed. This coincides with the Israeli army’s announcement of airstrikes on Syrian government positions in the Suwayda governorate in response to the targeting of Druze civilians.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated: “We will not allow the Syrian regime to exploit our war against Iran and Hezbollah to harm the Druze. If necessary, we will attack with even greater force.”
Katz added, “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have directed the IDF to strike Syrian regime infrastructure in the Suwayda region as a direct response to the targeting of the Druze population in southern Syria.”
He noted that “the message to the Syrian regime is clear and decisive: Israel will not stand idly by, nor will it allow any party to harm the Druze by exploiting our war against the Iranian terror regime and the Hezbollah organization in Lebanon,” emphasizing: “If necessary, we will attack with even greater force.”
Katz stressed that “anyone who attacks the Druze in Syria—who are brothers to our Druze brothers in Israel—will be harmed,” adding that Israel “will continue to act firmly and powerfully on all fronts to protect its allies and ensure Israel’s security.”
In a related context, the Israeli military announced it launched overnight airstrikes targeting a “command center and weapons within military complexes” in southern Syria. It explained that these strikes were in response to attacks targeting Druze civilians in the Suwayda governorate.
According to the Associated Press, the military clarified that it carried out the raids in response to Thursday’s events, “during which Druze citizens in the Suwayda region were assaulted,” affirming that it “will not allow the Druze in Syria to be harmed and will continue to work to protect them.”
The statement noted that this attack marks the first Israeli targeting inside Syria since the outbreak of the Israeli-American war on Iran.
On the other hand, a statement issued by the “Rights Monitor Syria” organization pointed to an escalation of human rights violations in the Suwayda governorate during March 18 and 19, 2026. It detailed cases of enforced disappearance and arbitrary detention of civilians, particularly members of the Druze community.
For its part, the National Guard Forces Command confirmed in a statement that its units “repelled hostile heavy machine-gun fire originating from the terrorist Damascus government forces,” noting that “the sources of the breach were directly targeted and fully neutralized.”
It added that its forces “continue to deal immediately with any source of breach to ensure the safety of residents and fighters and to maintain the region’s stability.”
In another statement, the National Guard Forces Command explained that “the terrorist Damascus government forces carried out a series of systematic attacks from Wednesday morning until dawn Thursday,” noting that these included “cases of kidnapping and strikes with missiles and drones.” These attacks resulted in “seven martyrs and four injuries, in addition to nineteen recorded cases of kidnapping.”
The statement highlighted specific incidents, including “three martyrs in the farmlands of the town of Najran” and “twelve cases of detention at the Al-Matuna checkpoint,” as well as “the martyrdom of four young men and the kidnapping of seven in the area between the towns of Baka and Bard.” Furthermore, “the city was targeted with several Grad rockets, leading to the burning of a house and three injuries, all of whom were women.”
The National Guard Command concluded its statement by emphasizing that these attacks “will not pass without accountability and will only increase its determination and resolve to perform its duties in protecting the people and maintaining stability.”
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