Syria's president accuses Israel of 'trying to drug us into war'
July 17 (UPI) -- Syria's interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, accused Israel on Thursday of "trying to drag us into war" after the Netanyahu government launched airstrikes on military forces in Damascus.
During a televised speech, al-Sharaa said Israel was "once again seeking to transform our blessed land into a theater of endless chaos" as well as "dismantle the unity of our people and weaken our ability to advance the path of reconstruction and progress."
"The Israeli entity is using every possible means to sow conflict and strife, ignoring the fact that Syrians, throughout their history, have rejected all forms of separation and partition," he said.
"Possessing great power does not necessarily mean achieving victory. A war can be started, but it is not easy to control its results."
Al-Sharaa made the speech after Israel had continued to attack southern Syria for a third day on Wednesday.
In a statement, the Israeli military said it had struck the entrance of the Syrian military's headquarters in Damascus amid sectarian violence in the Druze province.
Israel has said the strikes were meant to protect the Syrian Arab Druze minority and to force al-Sharaa to withdraw his forces from the region, where there have been violent armed clashes between Druze, Bedouin and government forces.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 248 people have been killed in such clashes since Sunday.
"We are acting to save our Druze brothers and to eliminate the gangs of the regime," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said Wednesday in a statement.
al-Sharaa's speech comes after his military forces began to withdraw from the area following mediation talks involving the United States.
In a statement on social media on Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said they have reached an agreement "on specific steps that will bring this troubling and horrifying situation to an end tonight."
"This will require all parties to deliver on the commitments they have made, and this is what we fully expect them to do."
During a press conference at the White House with President Donald Trump and Bahrain Prime Minister Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Rubio said the violence in southwest Syria stems from historic rivalries between the tribal groups.
"It led to an unfortunate situation and a misunderstanding, it looks like, between the Israeli side and the Syrian side," he said. "So, we've engaged with them all morning long and all night long with both sides. And we think we're on our way towards a real de-escalation and then hopefully get back on track in helping Syria build a country."
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