Israeli airstrikes on two Syrian airports have drawn condemnation from Moscow, an ally of Damascus.
“These actions by Israel are a gross violation of Syria’s sovereignty and the basic rules of international law,” Russia’s foreign ministry said on Oct. 12.
Earlier the same day, the Damascus and Aleppo international airports were simultaneously attacked by Israeli warplanes, damaging runways and grounding flights.
In line with longstanding Israeli policy, Israel’s military declined to comment on the airstrikes.
Israel, which has fought three major conflicts with Syria, conducts frequent strikes on Syrian territory.
It claims the strikes are aimed at Iranian military personnel who have been operating in Syria—at the latter’s invitation—since 2015.
The Israeli strikes came one day before Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Iran’s foreign minister, had been due to visit Damascus.
According to Syria’s foreign ministry, the strikes were aimed at “inflaming the regional situation and distracting attention from Israeli war crimes against the Palestinian people in Gaza.”
For the past six days, Israeli warplanes have relentlessly pounded the Gaza Strip, which is home to some 2.3 million Palestinians.
The ongoing airstrikes have leveled buildings and killed upwards of 1,500 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
The strikes come in response to an Oct. 7 cross-border raid by Hamas, a Gaza-based militant group, that left some 1,300 Israelis—soldiers and civilians—dead.
Syria, which has remained in a state of war with Israel since the latter’s establishment in 1948, has praised Hamas’ deadly cross-border raid.
‘Axis of Resistance’
During a visit to Beirut on Oct. 12, Mr. Amir-Abdollahian warned that ongoing Israeli “war crimes” against the Palestinians would draw a response from what has been called the “axis of resistance.”The term refers to an alliance of states and groups opposed to Israel, including Iran, Syria, Palestinian militant groups, and Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah militia.
“Western officials have asked if there is an intention to open a new front against the Zionist entity,” Mr. Amir-Abdollahian said in reference to Israel.
“The continuation of war crimes against Palestine and Gaza will receive a response from the rest of the axis,” he added.
Long seen as Israel’s arch-foe in the region, Iran has praised Hamas’ cross-border attack while rejecting claims that it was involved in the raid.
During his trip to the Lebanese capital, Mr. Amir-Abdollahian also met with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Since the latest round of violence began, Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged fire across the fraught Israel-Lebanon border.
On Oct. 13, Lebanese media reported that Israeli artillery had struck several positions inside Lebanese territory.
On the same day, Hezbollah deputy chief Naim Qassem said the militant group was “entirely ready” to enter the fray.
“Behind-the-scenes calls with great powers, Arab countries, UN envoys … telling us not to interfere [in the conflict] will have no effect,” he told supporters in Beirut.
“Hezbollah is well aware of its obligations,” Mr. Qassem added. “We are prepared and entirely ready.”
Israel invaded southern Lebanon in 1978, 1982, and 2006.
In the last conflict, Israeli forces withdrew from the country after fighting a month-long war with Hezbollah in which hundreds—mostly Lebanese civilians—were killed.
At an Oct. 13 press briefing with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Mr. Gallant asserted that Hamas and Iran were both part of an “axis of evil.”
Putin Urges ‘Two-State’ Solution
Unlike most Western capitals, Moscow has adopted a relatively measured approach to the conflict.On Oct. 13, Russian President Vladimir Putin blamed the latest outbreak of violence on Washington’s “one-sided” approach to the decades-long dispute between Israel and the Palestinians.
“The Americans’ one-sided stance has for many years kept the situation in a deadlock,” he said at a regional summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
“This, along with [Israeli] settlement activities, has led to the present-day tragedy,” Mr. Putin added.
He also cautioned Israel against a full-scale invasion of the Gaza Strip, which, he said, would likely result in an “unacceptable” number of civilian casualties.
In earlier remarks, Mr. Putin voiced support for Israel’s right to defend itself—but he also called for a negotiated solution.
“The primary aim of negotiations should be the implementation of the UN’s ‘two-state’ formula, which implies the creation of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital,” he said on Oct. 11.
