ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Violent explosions from Israeli airstrikes early Monday shook Syria's coastal regions, with the blasts reportedly registering as seismic activity equivalent to a 3.0 magnitude earthquake, according to activists.

The attacks targeted multiple military sites of the fallen regime in the provinces of Tartus, Hama, and Homs, leading to significant destruction of strategic missile systems and fires near the coastal areas, activists and state media reported. The intensity of the blasts reportedly led to seismic monitors in the village of al-Fattasiyah, in rural Tartus, to record them as tremors.

The Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Center, however, did not officially register any earthquakes in the region during the strikes.

Israeli warships reportedly launched several missiles from the Mediterranean, marking what sources described as the first use of such weaponry in targeting Syrian military positions.

Syrian emergency response teams, including firefighters and medical personnel, were dispatched to villages and towns affected by the strikes. Satellite images released by independent analysts show significant damage to military facilities in rural Tartus.

Israel Escalates Operations

In recent days, Israel has intensified operations on military infrastructure of the Bashar al-Assad regime, targeting what it describes as the country’s most strategic weapons. Israel claimed to have neutralized over 90 percent of Syria’s surface-to-air missile systems, causing severe damage to the country’s air defense capabilities.

Additionally, Israeli ground forces reportedly advanced several kilometers into the Syrian Golan Heights, entering the demilitarized zone established in 1974 after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on December 8. The United Nations condemned the incursion as a violation of the Israel-Syria disengagement agreement.

Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, leader of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which assumed power in Syria following Assad's fall, denounced the Israeli incursion into southern Syria. In statements shared via opposition-affiliated Telegram channels, Sharaa said “The Israelis have clearly crossed disengagement lines in Syria, threatening unjustified escalation in the region.”

However, Sharaa stressed that “Syria’s exhausted state after years of war and conflict does not allow for engaging in new confrontations.”

He added, “The priority at this stage is reconstruction and stability, not being drawn into conflicts that could lead to further destruction.”