Israel launched rare strikes in Damascus on Wednesday in a campaign it said was aimed at defending the Druze community after days of clashes in the southern city of Sweida.

Syria’s military entered a stronghold for the Druze minority in the country’s south on Tuesday to “pursue outlaw groups,” the government said, prompting Israel to launch strikes against the forces dispatched by Damascus.

"If Israel feels that a certain leader...is an evident threat to its national security, it will operate," a former Israeli envoy told Newsweek.