WASHINGTON
A US defense official on Tuesday denied claims in Israeli media that recent Israeli airstrikes against Syria were conducted in coordination with the US.
"The US did not participate in the strikes," the official told Anadolu, when asked about the reports, which said Israeli airstrikes on Syria were being conducted "in coordination" with the US.
"For additional information we refer you to the IDF," the official said, referring to the Israeli military.
Israeli warplanes launched airstrikes against Syrian forces in southwestern Syria for a second day Tuesday.
An Israeli military statement said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the army to strike Syrian forces and military vehicles in the Suwayda governorate.
The army “struck several armored fighting vehicles consisting of tanks, APCs, and MLRS, as well as access roads, in order to disrupt the convoys' arrival to the area,” it said.
Early Tuesday, Syrian Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra announced a full ceasefire in Suwayda following negotiations with local community leaders.
The Syrian army has begun withdrawing heavy military equipment from Suwayda, preparing for the handover of the city’s neighborhoods to internal security forces responsible for maintaining law and order, according to the Syrian news agency, SANA.
On Monday, more than 30 people were killed and nearly 100 injured in clashes between Bedouin tribal fighters and Druze militias in Suwayda, said the Syrian Interior Ministry.