Israel says it has destroyed much of Syria’s air defenses. Kretschmer criticizes the debate about Syrians leaving the country. All developments in the news blog.
6:00 p.m.: Israel’s army has given new details about the destruction of Syria’s air defense systems in attacks in recent days. The Israeli military said that more than 90 percent of the surface-to-air missiles in Syria that Israel was aware of had been destroyed. These are used to intercept enemy missiles.
Syria’s air defenses were among the strongest in the Middle East. In view of the immense damage, Israel’s army spoke of a “significant success for the superiority of the Israeli Air Force in the region.” Israel also severely damaged other strategic weapons in Syria, including surface-to-surface missiles, drones and fighter jets.
The Jerusalem Post reported that the Islamist rebel group Haiat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) could now – should it decide to do so – no longer threaten Israel with the advanced weapons that the Syrian government under the deposed Bashar al-Assad still possessed . The neighboring country is not yet aware of the extent of the loss.
4 p.m.: Saxony’s Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer (CDU) also expressed massive criticism of Union politicians who had started a debate about the departure of Syrian refugees shortly after the fall of the Assad regime. The fact that just a few hours later “a huge discussion started immediately about deporting people on a larger scale again is not a responsible approach,” said Kretschmer after the Prime Minister’s meeting.
You have to see that the people who work here can stay, says Kretschmer. Objectivity is required in the debate. Among other things, the deputy CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader Jens Spahn immediately demanded a handout of 1,000 euros so that Syrians could leave Germany again. Saxony’s Prime Minister demands that we first wait and see in which direction Syria develops.
3 p.m.: The G7 countries are calling for a credible transition process in Syria that includes and protects all groups of the population. A political transition after the end of Bashar al-Assad’s 24-year authoritarian rule must ensure respect for the rule of law, universal human rights including women’s rights, the protection of all Syrians, including religious and ethnic minorities, transparency and accountability, it said a declaration by the seven leading western industrialized countries, which includes Germany, Great Britain, Canada, the USA, France, Italy and Japan.
In the statement, the group promises: “The G7 will work with and fully support a future Syrian government, provided it meets these standards and emerges from this process.” In addition, Syria’s territorial integrity and national unity must be preserved and its independence and sovereignty respected.
8:35 a.mAt least 38 people have been killed in new Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian reports. Seven people were killed in an attack on a residential building in Gaza City, reports the Palestinian news agency Wafa. These include children and women. Another 15 people were killed in the bombing of a house west of the Nuseirat refugee settlement in the center of the Gaza Strip. Those displaced by the ongoing fighting sought refuge there.
In the southern border town of Rafah, 13 Palestinians were killed and several others injured. A group that was responsible for protecting trucks carrying relief supplies is said to have been hit here. According to medics, several people were injured in an air strike on such a security force in neighboring Khan Yunis.
The Israeli army said that two different “meeting points in the south of the Gaza Strip were targeted” following intelligence information about the presence of armed Hamas terrorists. “The terrorists were operating on the humanitarian corridor in the south of the Gaza Strip,” it said. The aim of the attack was to ensure the safe delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians. Hamas terrorists intended to attack trucks carrying aid supplies.
6:14 a.m: Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is calling for increased cooperation to stabilize the situation in the Middle East following the coup in Syria. On the sidelines of government talks in Iraq, the SPD politician also held out the prospect of greater German involvement if desired. With a view to the situation in Syria, he said that cooperation with the new rulers might be conceivable under certain circumstances.
