The Israeli military’s targeting of the Abu Dhuhur Military Air Base in Syria’s northern Idlib province sparked debate in Israel over the Netanyahu government’s relations with Türkiye and the United States. The strike was carried out on August 18 against the abandoned base east of Idlib.
A Syrian official said Israeli warplanes carried out eight strikes on the base. In addition to the runway, an unused structure inside a hangar was also targeted. No information was provided on whether the strikes caused deaths or injuries.
Israeli opposition figures criticize Netanyahu
Yair Golan, leader of Israel’s Democrats Party, described the operation as a “brazen and dangerous” step by Netanyahu. Golan said Israel was escalating tensions with Türkiye through the move while deepening its differences with the United States.
Golan argued that the prime minister was resorting to military force for political calculations and that this approach was imposing a security cost on Israel. Describing Netanyahu as an “extreme and unreliable” actor, Golan said a stable region could not be established under his leadership.
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak also described the escalation of tensions with Türkiye as irresponsible and “stupid.” Barak said Türkiye was not the same as Syria under Assad’s rule or Iran, and stated that the problems could be resolved through contacts with Türkiye and Syria coordinated by the United States.
Barak further argued that Netanyahu had achieved none of his war aims and was trying to preserve his political position. He said Netanyahu’s approach was alarming the few allies Israel still had in the region and around the world.
Yaalon calls on opposition to act
Former Israeli Chief of Staff and Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon urged opposition leaders to focus on removing Netanyahu from power. Ya’alon said this was necessary to save the lives of civilians and soldiers and prevent further destruction.
Ya’alon said the strike on the military air base in Syria had created tensions with Türkiye and drawn a reaction from the United States. Accusing Netanyahu of keeping Israel’s war fronts open, Ya’alon argued that he was trying to create new fronts to avoid being held accountable for the “Al-Aqsa Flood” attack of October 2023.
Strike linked to electoral calculations
Israeli political commentators Esther Solomon and Jonathan Lis assessed that electoral expectations may have influenced Netanyahu’s decisions. Solomon argued that Netanyahu had failed to obtain the poll results he wanted ahead of the elections scheduled for October and was trying to increase support for his party through military moves.
Solomon said Netanyahu had in recent days used multiple fronts, including Syria, southern Lebanon and Gaza, for political purposes. Lis said the escalation of tensions with Türkiye and Syria as the Israeli elections approached raised questions at a time when the U.S. administration was calling on the parties to exercise restraint.
According to Lis, Netanyahu’s election campaign is based on his relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump and cooperation in efforts to reshape the Middle East. He assessed that a possible military confrontation could intensify tensions between Tel Aviv and Washington and harm Netanyahu’s political position.
Likud loses seats in polls
Polls ahead of the October elections showed a decline in support for Netanyahu’s Likud party, which has 32 lawmakers in Israel’s 120-seat parliament. One poll projected that Likud would fall from 32 to 23 seats, dropping to second place.
According to the same poll, the parties making up the coalition government led by Netanyahu would hold a combined 51 seats. This means the government would not reach the majority needed to form a government.
