Israeli airstrikes in Syria kill one, injure seven others 

The latest Israeli aggression targeted the Aleppo international airport. The airstrikes took place a day after a joint statement calling for peace and stability in Syria was issued by Arab countries after they met in the Jordanian capital Amman

May 02, 2023 by Peoples Dispatch
Israeli airstrikes after Amman statement on Syria
(Photo: SANA)

Multiple Israeli airstrikes targeted different sites in Aleppo in northern Syria early on Tuesday, May 2. At least one Syrian soldier was killed and seven other people were injured, including two civilians, Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported. The airstrikes took place a day after a joint statement calling for peace and stability in Syria was issued by Arab countries after they met in the Jordanian capital Amman. 

According to SANA, the latest Israeli aggression targeted the Aleppo international airport. The attack damaged the airport, once again putting it out of service.  

Israel has repeatedly targeted the Aleppo airport despite it being one of the main airports for coordinating relief materials to the victims of the February earthquake in Syria and Turkey, in which thousands of people were killed. 

Israel carried out similar airstrikes across the Lebanese airspace in Homs two days ago. At least three civilians were injured and massive destruction was caused to civilian infrastructure, Al-Mayadeen reported.  

Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes inside Syria since the beginning of the war in the country in 2011. It does not take responsibility for most these airstrikes. Syria and Lebanon have filed various complaints against these attacks at the UN, calling them violations of their territorial sovereignty. However, the UN has failed to take any action yet. 

Amman meet 

Foreign ministers of Syria, Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt met in Amman on Monday, May 1, to discuss various issues related to the Syrian conflict and its relationship with other Arab countries in the region.

The meeting was the latest sign of re-integration of Syria into the region after over a decade-long isolation. Saudi Arabia and some other Arab countries recently restored their relations with Syria. There are also strong indications of Syria re-joining the Arab League soon. 

At the end of the meeting, a joint statement was issued in which participants stressed their support for Syria’s institutions, its territorial integrity, and called for ending terrorism in the country. The statement also emphasized that all foreign troops illegally based in Syria must withdraw. 

Turkey and the US, both NATO members, have illegally occupied parts of Syria and placed hundreds of soldiers there. 

The statement underlined the need to end all kinds of foreign intervention and to develop greater coordination between the UN, neighboring countries, and Syria to better manage its border, which is being used for trafficking drugs and has seen inflow of terrorism. 

The Amman statement also talked about finding a comprehensive political solution to the conflict in the country, which “should maintain Syria’s sovereignty, satisfy the wants and needs of its people and protect it from terrorism,” TASS reported.  

On the specific issue of drug trafficking, the agreement talks about the formation of a working group on political and security issues with the participation of Syria, Iraq, and Jordan, which will “identify the sources of production and trafficking of drugs from Syria.”

Over a decade of war in Syria has created several lawless regions in the country, making them centers for terrorism (ISIS) and drug trafficking