Syria’s new government is facing mounting criticism at home over its failure to condemn Israel for violating its air space to attack Iran, with Syrians demanding Damascus leverage its growing diplomatic relations and call for a halt to the breaches.
For a fifth consecutive day, Syrians have looked to the skies, watching as Israeli jets roar high above the clouds as the thuds from explosions bellow out – signs that Iranian drones and missiles have apparently been intercepted by US weaponry over Syria.
While social media has been awash with sarcastic commentary about the hostilities between Israel and Iran – two nations many Syrian revolutionaries view as enemies – the reality on the ground has been marked by anxiety and fear, especially in Syria’s southern provinces near the Israeli border.
Emad al-Basiri, an activist based in Daraa province, told Middle East Eye that fragments from drones and missiles have repeatedly fallen on residential areas, causing widespread alarm.
“People are extremely tense,” Basiri said.
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“The explosions are terrifying. Drones crashing down have destroyed homes and caused agricultural fires,” he added.
Israel’s large-scale assault, which began on 13 June and has targeted Iranian military and nuclear sites, has not lost momentum.
Iran has suffered the losses of its top military commanders and nuclear scientists. Hundreds of civilians have also been killed.
In retaliation, the Islamic Republic has fired hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel, causing widespread devastation in the cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa, and the deaths of dozens.
Syria’s geographic location has made its skies a battleground for the tit-for-tat strikes.
Debris has repeatedly crashed on the ground, particularly in the southern provinces of Quneitra and Daraa – near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
“There is ongoing fear from falling war remnants,” Basiri said, noting that ordinary Syrians felt helpless while the Syrian government was silent on the issue.
No condemnation, no comment
The Syrian government has failed to issue any official condemnations of the violations of its airspace – either by Israel or Iran.
This contrasts with steps taken by neighbouring Iraq, which filed an official complaint with the United Nations after Israeli aircraft crossed its airspace to strike targets in Iran.
‘The Syrian government must step up its diplomatic efforts’
– Fadel Abdul Ghany, Syrian Network for Human Rights
Basiri emphasised that residents in Daraa and Quneitra feel they need protection from the new government that emerged after rebels ousted the Assad dynasty on 8 December, ending the country’s brutal 14-year civil war.
“Syria’s airspace and borders are completely unguarded,” he said, adding that the nearest Syrian security forces are about nine-kilometres from the Israeli border.
“We call on the government to take control of the borders.”
Meanwhile, Israeli patrols have continued to enter Syrian territory, and have carried out dozens of arbitrary arrests and killed one person last week.
Fadel Abdul Ghany, the director of the Syrian Network for Human Rights, told MEE that the Syrian government should file a complaint with the UN Security Council under Articles 35 and 51 of the UN Charter.
These articles allow nations to defend themselves and request international action to halt hostilities on their territory.
“The Syrian government must step up its diplomatic efforts,” Abdul Ghany said.
“It should oppose the militarisation of its airspace, demand a humanitarian flight corridor, and assert its neutrality by rejecting the use of its skies for any hostile actions.”
‘Entirely inadequate’
So far, Syria’s response has been “entirely inadequate,” Abdul Ghany said, adding that the government must coordinate more closely with the Arab League and the European Union to monitor both sides and develop a comprehensive strategy that safeguards Syria’s national interests.
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Samar Abu Raslan, an architect from Sweida, agreed, calling the optics of Syria’s silence alarming.
Syria appears “sick and powerless,” Abu Raslan she told MEE.
“As a Syrian citizen, I want my skies, land, and water protected from all forms of aggression and violation.”
According to Lina, a Damascus-based journalist who declined to give her surname, the new Syrian government’s decision to not even issue a tepid statement was damning.
“The Syrian government doesn’t even issue statements about reserving the right to respond,” she said – a phrase that was repeatedly invoked by the government of now ousted Bashar al-Assad.
She said that even though Syria wasn’t aligned with either of the warring sides, Damascus’ silence illustrated that it was clearly a party to this conflict.
MEE reached out to the Syrian government for comment but did not receive a response by time of publication.
