Current sectionMiddle East NewsSyria NewsAfter Israel struck a Syrian airbase, officials in Jerusalem sent mixed messages. Netanyahu, for his part, is seeking to counter claims that he is inflaming tensions ahead of the electionShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeJonathan Lis11:09 AM • August 23 2026 IDTEver since Israel's airstrike on the military air base at Abu al-Duhur in Idlib province in northwestern Syria early last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government have been advancing two parallel narratives.Loading...Click the alert icon to follow topics:SyriaIsrael strikeIDFIsrael–TurkeyRecep Tayyip ErdoganTurkeyBenjamin NetanyahuCommentsLoading...In the NewsIn the News: Live UpdatesWest BankHind RajabTurkey-InterpolE1 TenderNetanyahuGazaCalifornia Special ElectionHaQuizHaaretz PodcastAttacking Erdogan or Clinging to the Status Quo? Israel's Turkey ParadoxSettlers Call Them 'Hikes.' Palestinians Keep Ending Up DeadTrump's Envoy Was Right to Condemn Netanyahu Over Syria StrikeBen-Gurion Airport Has Everything Israel Loves: Privilege, Racism and a Way OutNetanyahu's Need for Constant Security Crises Sparks Rare Clash With WashingtonRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIIDF Marks Detained Palestinians With Numbers as Northern West Bank Raids ExpandThe American Jewish Establishment Is Defending an Israel That No Longer ExistsSo Will It Be a Problem if Miriam Adelson Flies to Israel to Vote?An Israeli Startup Is Reinventing Salmon Farming. It May Upend a Global IndustryIsraeli Army Orders Criminal Probes Into Killing of Hind Rajab, Gaza MedicsGo to Qusra to See What Israel Is Trying to Hide