Why Turkey Did Not Retaliate Against Israel's Attack on Abu al-Duhur Air Base
Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on Friday (21/8/2026) that Turkey and Syria are avoiding an escalation of war after Israel unilaterally bombed an air base in Syria near the Turkish border. Haaretz quoted two Syrian officials close to the president and foreign ministry as saying Damascus believes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is deliberately provoking a conflict that Syria cannot fight.
Damascus also believes that through the attack on the air base in Syria, Netanyahu is seeking domestic attention ahead of the October 2026 elections. According to the sources, Syria continues to communicate with the United States and France and wants a security agreement with Israel. Damascus is also seeking ways to amend the 1974 agreement that established a buffer zone between Israel and Syria after the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.
Israel bombed the runway and storage warehouses at the Abu al-Duhur base in southwestern Syria on Tuesday. There were no deaths or injuries from the Israeli air strike. The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office claimed Syria nearly violated the security agreement by allowing Turkish forces to be stationed at Abu al-Duhur and also ignored warnings from Tel Aviv.
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani later said Turkish military officials visited the air base for training and there were no plans for permanent troop deployment. Turkey’s Ministry of Defence denied Damascus’s account and stressed that no Turkish delegation visited Abu al-Duhur before or after the Israeli air strike.
Turkish sources told Haaretz that Turkey will continue to support Syria in diplomacy and defence and hopes Washington will stop Israel. According to the sources, Ankara does not see the current escalation as an opportunity to score political or media points against Israel.
Meanwhile, US Ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria from Iraq, Tom Barrack, called the Israeli attack an ‘unnecessary escalation’ and said Turkey had received the warning. He said the lack of notification had led Turkey to consider responding but it then ‘held back’ so that the conflict would not escalate further. Barrack told Reuters that Washington is currently building diplomatic channels between Turkey, Israel, and Syria to avoid unwanted fighting.