DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — The Israeli army said Wednesday that it struck near the entrance to the Syrian Ministry of Defense in Damascus. The strike came as clashes continued in the southern Syrian city of Sweida after a ceasefire between government forces and Druze armed groups collapsed.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the Damascus headquarters served as a command center for deploying regime forces to Suwayda, a southern Syrian region gripped by days of deadly clashes between government troops, Druze militias, and Bedouin groups.

An Israeli military official said, "we are reinforcing forces in the Golan Heights and along the border, ready for a multitude of scenarios."

The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday attacked the entrance to the Syrian regime’s military headquarters in the Damascus area in response to reports of atrocities against local Druze residents.

Israel carried out a series of powerful strikes on the Syrian capital Damascus Wednesday, escalating a campaign it says is in support of an Arab minority group involved in deadly clashes with Syrian government forces.

The Israel Defense Force attacks regime troops affiliated with Syria’s interim president, Ahmed Al-Sharaa, while the new Damascus regime’s

U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee says Israel should "aggressively investigate the murder of Saif Mussallet" in the occupied West Bank.

Israel’s defense minister said he told the military to advance plans for what he called a “humanitarian city” built on the ruins of Rafah in southern Gaza, according to reports in Israeli media.