The collapse of the Assad regime has triggered a severe military response from Israel, which has launched airstrikes on military targets throughout Syria and deployed ground troops into and beyond a demilitarized buffer zone for the first time in 50 years.

The Israeli military reports that it has targeted approximately 480 military sites across Syria, destroying much of the country’s “strategic weapons stockpiles” in the past 48 hours. Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Katz, also announced that the Israeli navy had destroyed the Syrian fleet overnight, calling the operation “a great success.”

In a Telegram update last night, the Israel Defense Forces released footage showing its forces bombing what it identified as the al Bayda and Latakia naval ports, where 15 Syrian vessels were docked. The strikes also targeted anti-aircraft batteries, airfields, and weapons production facilities in Damascus, Homs, Tartus, Latakia, and Palmyra.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the attacks on Syria aim to prevent weapons from falling into the hands of jihadist groups. “We have no intention of interfering in the internal affairs of Syria,” he said in a video statement. “But we certainly intend to do what is necessary to ensure our security.”

Meanwhile, fighting continues in northern Syria between pro-Turkish and Kurdish factions. Two paramedics were killed when their ambulance was struck by a drone, and a woman was killed when her vehicle was hit.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) reported that Turkish warplanes and drones were flying intensively over the airspace in Kobani, Manbij, and other areas. In Raqqa, further south, two drone strikes were reported by the SDF, with social media videos showing smoke rising from one location. Turkish military and intelligence officials have declined to comment on the strikes, and Turkish-backed factions in northern Syria, which also possess attack drones, have not issued any statements regarding the situation in Raqqa.