Syria fears Netanyahu could launch ‘extraordinary’ action ahead of election

The report did not indicate that Syrian officials have intelligence regarding a specific planned Israeli operation.

By World Israel News Staff

Syrian officials are increasingly concerned that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could carry out an unusual military operation in Syria in the final days before Israel’s election, according to a report Monday by Kan News.

A source familiar with the matter in Damascus told Kan that Syrian officials are “concerned about moves Prime Minister Netanyahu may carry out in Syria in order to gain an advantage in the current Israeli election campaign.”

“The elections appear fateful, and Netanyahu may carry out an extraordinary action,” the source said.

The report did not indicate that Syrian officials have intelligence regarding a specific planned Israeli operation but said concerns in Damascus have grown following a series of recent statements and actions by Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials.

A Syrian government official, responding through state media, strongly rejected what Damascus described as Netanyahu’s attempt to draw Syria’s Druze community into Israel’s election campaign.

The tensions intensified last week after Netanyahu publicly revealed for the first time that he had spoken directly with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa during the deadly violence against Druze civilians in southern Syria last year.

Speaking at a Likud event with members of Israel’s Druze community, Netanyahu said he called Sharaa after Israel struck Syrian government targets in Damascus, including the Defense Ministry, in an effort to halt the violence.

“I picked up the phone to Sharaa,” Netanyahu said. “It was a very short and very sharp conversation. And the slaughter stopped.”

Netanyahu added that Israel remained committed to protecting Syria’s Druze community, saying, “I will do everything I can to protect our brothers and your brothers.”

Defense Minister Israel Katz went even further at the event, claiming that Sharaa was preparing forces for another possible campaign against the Druze and was waiting to see the outcome of Israel’s election.

“The president of Syria has already prepared the Arab tribes, he has prepared the internal security forces, he has prepared the Syrian army for one thing,” Katz said. “He is waiting to see what happens in the elections, and he prays that Netanyahu will not be elected.”

The escalating rhetoric comes amid broader Israeli concerns about security developments across the Syrian border.

Katz warned last month that Israeli forces would remain on Mount Hermon and in the security zone in southern Syria as long as Israel faces a jihadist threat from Syrian forces or other armed groups.

“We will not allow Syria to become a threat to Israel, and we will act as necessary to prevent this,” Katz said.

Tensions have also grown over Turkey’s expanding influence in Syria.

In August, Israel struck the Abu al-Duhur military airfield in northern Syria after warning Damascus against allowing Turkish forces to deploy there. Netanyahu subsequently said Israel would not tolerate a Turkish military presence in Syria that could threaten the Jewish state.

“We made the message clear: Don’t,” Netanyahu said after the strike.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir similarly warned during a visit to southern Syria that Israel would not allow hostile forces to establish themselves near its border and was prepared to use military force when necessary.

The latest concerns in Damascus come just one week before Israelis head to the polls on Oct. 27, with Syria emerging as another sensitive regional front during the final stretch of the campaign.