US envoy criticizes Israel's intervention in Syria
Tom Barrack, U.S. ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, is engaged in ceasefire efforts to halt sectarian violence in Syria that broke out last week and triggered an Israeli intervention on behalf of Syria's minority Druze community. A ceasefire was announced on July 18.
Speaking in an interview with the AP from Beirut, Barrack said the U.S. was not consulted over Israel's decision to strike Syria last week, 'nor was it the United States' responsibility in matters that Israel feels is for its own self-defense.'
But he added that Israel's intervention 'creates another very confusing chapter' and 'came at a very bad time.'
Barrack's criticism follows an Axios report that White House officials are branding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a 'madman' who is undermining Trump's wider ambitions in the Middle East.
Trump has put his support behind the nascent, interim Syrian government, which took control of the country after ousting long-time dictator Bashar al-Assad in a lightning offensive at the end of 2024.
Trump announced in May that he would lift all U.S. sanctions on the country to give it a chance to rebuild. His administration has also removed the terrorist designation of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, the militant group that led the offensive and removed a $10 million bounty for the HTS's chief and now interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
And while Assad's ousting was widely celebrated, tensions and violence between sectarian groups persisted. Last week, fighting broke out in Syria's southern Sweida province between Bedouin fighters and Druze factions.
Over 300 people were reportedly killed in the fighting and Israel intervened with strikes against Damascus and against Syrian government forces in the south over what it said was protection for the Druze community.
The Druze minority in Israel is deeply respected for its service to the state. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strikes were launched to prevent the militarization of Syrian forces on Israel's northern border and to protect 'the brothers of our brothers, the Druze at the Druze Mountain.'
Al-Sharaa condemned the Israeli strikes as an attempt to sow 'chaos' in the country.
The Trump administration has sought to broker ties between the interim Syrian government and Israel in what would be a major breakthrough in peace relations in the region. Al-Sharaa has signaled openness to brokering ties with Israel but Israeli officials are cautious over empowering a government with past ties to terrorism and groups including Al-Qaeda and ISIS.
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