Syria slams deadly Jordan strikes as ‘unacceptable’ breach of airspace

Syria's foreign ministry has condemned Jordanian strikes in southern Syria, saying they were an unacceptable breach of airspace without prior coordination. The strikes, which were carried out in retaliation for a deadly church attack in Jordan last week, killed seven people, including three children and a woman. Jordan said it regretted the civilian casualties, but Syria's government said the strikes were a blatant violation of the principles of good-neighbourliness and Syrian national sovereignty. The Hashemite Kingdom's air force carried out the strikes in the southern Daraa and Sweida provinces, where Syria's civil defense said it only recovered the bodies of seven civilians killed. Five of those were a family, including three children and a woman; two of the men who were killed were elderly. Syria's government said the strikes were carried out without prior coordination or notification, and that they were a clear breach of airspace. Jordan's Government Communication Minister Mohammed al-Momani said the attacks were based on intelligence on “confirmed threats and planned terrorist acts against Jordan", and expressed regret over the civilian casualties. However, the numbers given in his remarks differ from what Syrian first-responders reported. Amman and Damascus maintained strong bilateral ties following the downfall of the Assad dynasty in December 2024 and the emergence of interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa’s Islamist-led government. Jordan said on Tuesday it was keen to safeguard its ties with Syria. "Jordan holds great respect for the Syrian state and its brotherly people, and coordination between Jordan and Syria in fighting terrorism and weapons and drug smuggling is ongoing and has been for years," Momani said. The strikes have caused widespread damage and loss of life in southern Syria, with many families left without homes or livelihoods. One family, who lost their home and loved ones in the strikes, spoke out about the devastating impact of the attack. Masoud al-Salim lost his wife, son, and three grandchildren in one of the strikes that hit his home in the Syrian border village of Al-Tuff in Daraa province. “I came running and found there was no house anymore, no tent, nothing. I couldn’t find anyone,” al-Salim said, rummaging through children’s schoolbooks and toys in the rubble. “I started looking under the rubble. I thought they might be buried there.”