Israel bombs hundreds of sites across Syria as army pushes into border zone

However, Israel denied its forces were advancing Tuesday toward the Syrian capital of Damascus.

A Syrian opposition fighter, left, stands guard as Syrian citizens stand on a government forces tank, that was left on a street, during the third day of the take over of the city by the insurgents in Damascus, Syria. Photo | AP

Israel said Tuesday it had bombed more than 350 military sites in Syria during the previous 48 hours, targeting “most of the strategic weapons stockpiles” in the country.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the wave of airstrikes in neighboring Syria was necessary to keep the weapons from being used against Israel following the Syrian government’s stunning collapse.

Israel also acknowledged its troops were pushing into a border buffer zone inside Syria, which was established after the 1973 Mideast war.

However, Israel denied its forces were advancing Tuesday toward the Syrian capital of Damascus.

Life in the capital was slowly returning to normal after jihadi-led Syrian insurgents ousted President Bashar Assad over the weekend. People celebrated for a third day in a main square, and shops and banks reopened.

The United States said Tuesday it would recognize and support a new Syrian government that renounces terrorism, destroys chemical weapons stocks and protects the rights of minorities and women.

Syria's nearly 14-year civil war killed nearly half a million people and displaced half of the country’s prewar population of 23 million, becoming a proxy battlefield for regional and international powers.