With Bashar al-Assad ousted from Syria and the Syrian military in shambles, Israel took the opportunity to set back any possible hostile threat from any new government that could rise up to fill the void by striking air defense sites and weapon/equipment caches. But according to the tone of foreign correspondent Imtiaz Tyab on Monday’s CBS Mornings, Israel might as well be blowing up residential buildings and minivans.
He even mourned for a Russian-made Hind attack helicopter because it could be on a target list and destroyed soon (pictured above).
The pearl clutching nature of the report was obvious with co-anchor Nate Burleson’s opening spiel for the segment:
The Israeli military is continuing its barrage of Syrian military targets after the country's long-time dictator was ousted. Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on weapons stockpiles, it says, to keep them out of the hands of extremists. Israeli troops are occupying territory across the border in Syria.
As if he was walking through a residential neighborhood, Tyab showed video of him exploring “a Syrian military air base on the outskirts of the capital Damascus” and looking on in horror at “the devastation caused by Israeli air strikes.”
He balked at Israel’s state mission and the idea that the Islamist rebels who toppled Assad were “extremists” in any way. “All part of efforts, Israel says, to destroy weapons and hardware before it can fall in the hands of, quote, ‘extremists,’” he scoffed.
Seemingly upset that the Syrian military wasn’t in a position to fight back, Tyab huffed: “Years of corruption hollowed out the war-scared nation’s the armed forces contributing to his regime's collapse.” That was immediately followed up with Tyab’s mourning for the possible destruction of the Hind attack helicopter.
He might as well have been Sarah McLauchlan singing “In the arms of the angel” in an ACPCA commercial as he spoke about how much potential the aircraft still had despite its “neglected” state:
Now this is a Syrian military attack helicopter. It may be old, it may be a bit neglected, but it is still operational. In fact, it also still has ammunition, making it a prime target for Israel strikes.
How much to adopt it into a new forever home?
Throughout his report, Tyab also falsely referred to a region of northern Israel as “the occupied Golan Heights;” a term used by anti-Semitic terrorists:
The lightning-fast takeover of Syria one week ago by Hayat Tahir al Sham rebels has also seen Israeli forces carry out a land incursion that stretches past the occupied Golan heights into a previously demilitarized buffer zone.
(…)
And Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu has also approved a plan to effectively double the Israeli population of the occupied Golan heights, a territory taken from Syria over 50 years ago. But in a statement, Netanyahu insisted that he did not want a conflict with Syria.
The Golan Heights became a part of Israel after Syria chose to join a multi-nation coalition in 1967 with the goal of wiping out the Jewish state. That coalition lost the Six-Day War and Israel took over that territory. But the facts didn’t matter to Tyab.
The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read:
CBS Mornings
December 16, 2024
7:08:35 a.m. EasternNATE BURLESON: The Israeli military is continuing its barrage of Syrian military targets after the country's long-time dictator was ousted. Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on weapons stockpiles, it says, to keep them out of the hands of extremists. Israeli troops are occupying territory across the border in Syria. Imtiaz Tyab reports from a Syrian military base hit by Israeli attacks.
[Cuts to video]
IMTIAZ TYAB: As we drove through a Syrian military air base on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, the devastation caused by Israeli air strikes was clear. All part of efforts, Israel says, to destroy weapons and hardware before it can fall in the hands of, quote, “extremists.”
What the Israeli military has been targeting, Syrian military infrastructure like this, recent relentlessly, and the damage is just breathtaking.
Like this massive strike overnight in the coastal city of Tartus. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Israeli war planes destroyed Syrian air defense units and other naval and military assets.
The lightning-fast takeover of Syria one week ago by Hayat Tahir al Sham rebels has also seen Israeli forces carry out a land incursion that stretches past the occupied Golan heights into a previously demilitarized buffer zone.
Ahmad al-Sharaa, Syria's de facto new leader has criticized what he described as Israel's, quote, “uncalculated military adventures.” And said he was more interested in state building than opening another conflict.
The targeting of Syria's military sites has also revealed the deep neglect by Bashar al Assad. Years of corruption hollowed out the war-scared nation’s the armed forces contributing to his regime's collapse.
Now this is a Syrian military attack helicopter. It may be old, it may be a bit neglected, but it is still operational. In fact, it also still has ammunition, making it a prime target for Israel strikes.
Strikes which show no sign of slowing down.
[Cuts back to live]
And Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu has also approved a plan to effectively double the Israeli population of the occupied Golan heights, a territory taken from Syria over 50 years ago. But in a statement, Netanyahu insisted that he did not want a conflict with Syria. Nate.
BURLESON: Imtiaz Tyab in Syria, thank you.
