The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs considered that "there is no justification" for the strikes occasionally carried out by the Jordanian air force in southern Syria as part of its fight against drug smuggling operations.

This is the first time Damascus condemns the Jordanian air strikes on its territory.

Jordanian aircraft have launched several raids inside Syrian territory, generally near the Jordanian border, primarily targeting drug smuggling and trafficking operations, which Amman has repeatedly announced its determination to confront and cooperate with Damascus to address.

The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today, Tuesday: "Syria emphasizes that there is no justification for such military operations inside Syrian territory," pointing out that it "tries to contain them out of keenness not to escalate tensions or affect the continuation of restoring the fraternal relationship between the two countries."

At least 9 people, including two girls and four women, were killed on January 18 in air raids believed to be Jordanian in the southern Sweida province, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights at the time, while no comment was issued by Jordan.

The Ministry added: "Syria expresses deep regret over the air strikes carried out by the Jordanian Air Force on several villages and areas within Syrian territory," most recently the Sweida raids, which "claimed the lives of a number of civilians, including children and women."

Jordan rarely announces conducting air raids in Syria, but it confirms that it has been active for years in thwarting arms and drug smuggling operations coming from Syria, especially after it became a route for drug trafficking.

The two countries had agreed to cooperate in combating drug smuggling and to form a joint committee to address this threat.

The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs considered that the recent escalation "is completely inconsistent with what was agreed upon between the joint committees from both sides," confirming that Syria has shown readiness "to cooperate with Jordanian civil and security institutions, but those messages were ignored and we did not receive a response nor any reaction from the Jordanian side."

Combating drug smuggling is one of the main issues agreed upon by the Arab countries regarding Syria after its return to the Arab League last year after more than a decade of diplomatic isolation.