The IDF hit the Abu al-Duhur military air base after it received intelligence that Turkey was seeking to station a radar and an air defense system manned by Turkish troops there, sources confirmed to The Jerusalem Post.
Israel told the US that intelligence suggested that Turkey was set to dispatch radar, troops, and air defense systems to a base in Syria, KAN News reported on Saturday.
While the IDF did not detail when the Turkish military systems were set to arrive, officials pointed to the Abu al-Duhur base as a possible target due to its proximity to the Turkish border.
Israeli sources also told KAN News that the four IDF strikes were aimed at the base’s runway to prevent Turkish troops from landing.
“Since the diplomatic message did not get through, Israel delivered it through a targeted warning strike,” one official said.
Defense Minister Katz: IDF warned Syria directly before strikes on base
Defense Minister Israel Katz had said earlier on Saturday that the army issued a direct warning to senior Syrian officials before the strikes on the Abu al-Duhur air base “in an attempt to prevent the move.”
“Following several discussions that Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] and I held with the IDF and the various security officials, it was agreed that before approval was given, a direct warning would be issued to the Syrian regime at the highest levels first in an attempt to prevent the move, and that is what was done,” Katz said.
“After the request went unanswered, the prime minister and I authorized the IDF to carry out the strike, which commenced successfully. [Turkish President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan was caught with his hand in the cookie jar and was forced to back down,” the defense minister said.