Israel launched powerful airstrikes in Damascus on Wednesday, blowing up part of the defence ministry and hitting near the presidential palace as it vowed to destroy government forces attacking Druze in southern Syria and demanded they withdraw.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the Damascus headquarters served as a command center for deploying regime forces to Suwayda, a southern Syrian region gripped by days of deadly clashes between government troops, Druze militias, and Bedouin groups.

Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has warned that Israel’s recent strikes on Damascus signal a wider agenda of destabilization, disarmament, and division across the Islamic world.

The Israeli military said it had "struck the entrance gate" of the Syrian regime's military headquarters complex in Damascus.

Secretary of State Rubio says the U.S. is "very concerned" by expanding Israeli strikes targeting Syria's new government, and he wants "the fighting to stop."

P LUMES OF SMOKE rose over Damascus on July 16th as Israeli warplanes struck Syria’s capital. Targeting the presidential palace, the defence ministry and the army command, the attack killed at least one person and wounded several others.

THE HAGUE (Reuters) -Israeli airstrikes on Damascus are hampering Syria's efforts to find and destroy chemical weapons stockpiled during the rule of toppled ruler Bashar al-Assad, a government adviser said on Thursday.

Israel carried out heavy airstrikes in the heart of Damascus on Wednesday, hitting Syrian Defense Ministry headquarters and an area near the presidential palace.

The Syrian government says clashes in the southern city of Suwayda have stopped after a week of violence left hundreds of people dead, drawing Israeli intervention and US condemnation.

Israel launched massive airstrikes in Damascus, Syria, as a response to apparent attacks against the Druze minorities in Sweida. Lina Sinjab with BBC News, a CBS News partner, has more.

Republican congressman and Israel caucus co-chair Joe Wilson rebukes Israeli military strikes on Syria, calling them insulting to Trump's recent diplomatic efforts in the region.