Latest news with #Israeli-Syrian
See - Sada Elbalad
6 days ago
- General
- See - Sada Elbalad
Syria Fires First Rockets at Golan Since Al-Sharaa's Rise
By Ahmad El-Assasy In a significant escalation, rockets were launched from Syria into the occupied Golan Heights on Monday, marking the first such attack since Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa assumed power. According to Cairo News, this is the first incident of cross-border fire from Syria since Al-Sharaa took office, highlighting a potential shift in the security dynamics along the Israeli-Syrian frontier. Israeli media outlets confirmed that two rockets landed in an open area in the southern part of the Golan Heights. No casualties or damages were reported. In response, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) stated that they are targeting the launch sites in Syria. The military stressed it would continue to act against any threats originating from across the border. The source of the rocket fire remains unclear, but Israeli analysts are monitoring the situation closely for signs of a broader confrontation or message from Damascus under its new leadership. The incident comes amid heightened regional tensions and increasing concerns over the militarization of Syria's border zones. read more Gold prices rise, 21 Karat at EGP 3685 NATO's Role in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict US Expresses 'Strong Opposition' to New Turkish Military Operation in Syria Shoukry Meets Director-General of FAO Lavrov: confrontation bet. nuclear powers must be avoided News Iran Summons French Ambassador over Foreign Minister Remarks News Aboul Gheit Condemns Israeli Escalation in West Bank News Greek PM: Athens Plays Key Role in Improving Energy Security in Region News One Person Injured in Explosion at Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid News Australia Fines Telegram $600,000 Over Terrorism, Child Abuse Content News China Launches Largest Ever Aircraft Carrier Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Sports Neymar Announced for Brazil's Preliminary List for 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers News Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly Inaugurates Two Indian Companies Arts & Culture New Archaeological Discovery from 26th Dynasty Uncovered in Karnak Temple Business Fear & Greed Index Plummets to Lowest Level Ever Recorded amid Global Trade War Arts & Culture Zahi Hawass: Claims of Columns Beneath the Pyramid of Khafre Are Lies News Flights suspended at Port Sudan Airport after Drone Attacks News Shell Unveils Cost-Cutting, LNG Growth Plan
Axios
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Trump expected to break 25-year precedent with Syria meeting
President Trump is planning to meet with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa in Riyadh on Wednesday, according to two sources familiar with the plan. Why it matters: The extraordinary talks with al-Sharaa — who remains on the U.S. terrorist list due to his past ties with al-Qaeda and ISIS — would mark the first meeting between a U.S. and Syrian president in 25 years. The last such meeting took place in 2000, when then-President Bill Clinton met with then-Syrian President Hafez al-Assad in Geneva as part of efforts to broker an Israeli-Syrian peace deal. Assad's son, Bashar al-Assad, was toppled in December in a lightning rebel offensive that brought al-Sharaa to power after 14 years of devastating civil war. "The president agreed to say hello to the Syrian president while in Saudi Arabia tomorrow," a White House official told Axios. When asked by reporters Tuesday if he expects to meet with al-Sharaa, Trump replied: "Yes, I think so" The big picture: A meeting between Trump and al-Sharaa could mark a shift in the administration's policy toward the new Syria government, which is struggling to rebuild the country under the weight of U.S. sanctions. In his first few weeks in office, Trump referred to al-Sharaa as "a Jihadi" when speaking with foreign leaders, a source with direct knowledge said. One of Trump's stated goals is to fully withdraw all remaining U.S. troops from Syria — a process he started in recent weeks. A meeting and potential coordination with the Syrian president could accelerate that process. Behind the scenes: Two sources with knowledge of the issue said Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, along with several countries like Turkey, Qatar and France, urged Trump to hold the meeting on the sidelines of his summit with Gulf leaders in Riyadh on Wednesday. What to watch: A source with direct knowledge said al-Sharaa is expected to ask Trump to lift or at least ease U.S. sanctions on Syria, which have been in place since the Assad regime was in power. Before departing for Saudi Arabia on Monday, Trump said he is considering lifting the sanctions to allow Syria to have a "fresh start." "[Turkey's] President Erdogan asked me about that. Many people ask me about that. We want to see if we can help them our. We will make a determination," Trump said. What they're saying: Charles Lister, director of the Syria program at the Middle East Institute, told Axios that the meeting could be a make-or-break moment for a country that urgently needs U.S. engagement and sanctions relief. "If President Trump wants to bring peace to the Middle East, the departure of Assad's regime and the near-defeat of Iran in the Levant presents him a historic opportunity — but Damascus will be central to whether that succeeds or fails," Lister said. "A Syrian olive branch has been extended for several months; it's up to Trump whether that's grasped or not." Mouaz Moustafa, the director of the Washington-based Syrian Emergency Task Force, briefed White House officials after meeting with al-Sharaa in Damascus for four hours several days ago. He told Axios al-Sharaa wants to meet Trump and present his vision for the country, and that he expressed strong interest in partnering with the U.S. on Syria's energy sector — including a proposal to allow a U.S. entity to manage Syria's oil and gas fields. Al-Sharaa emphasized his commitment to preventing Iranian reentry into Syria and continuing close cooperation with the U.S. on counterterrorism efforts, including the handling of ISIS prisoners, Moustafa added. Between the lines: The meeting would also mark another instance of Trump defying Israel's preferred policy, after the U.S. engaged with direct talks with Iran and negotiated a ceasefire with the Houthis. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is deeply skeptical towards the new Syrian government due to al-Sharaa and his advisers' past affiliation with al-Qaeda. Israel took over territory inside Syria to create a buffer zone after the collapse of the Assad regime, and has been conducting air strikes on Syrian military bases and weapons depot.
Washington Post
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Amid air strikes, interests of Turkey and Israel clash in Syria
ISTANBUL — Israeli strikes in Syria over the past two days have opened a new flash point in the Middle East as Israel increasingly appears to take aim at Turkish interests in Syria. Israel struck several targets on Wednesday night, including military bases in Hama and Homs in western central Syria, the Israel Defense Forces said. Turkey, a NATO member state and key ally of Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, has shown an interest in a military footprint in Syria. Syrian state news agency Sana reported that the strikes on Wednesday night targeted five different areas of Syria and resulted in injuries and the 'near-total destruction' of Hama Military Airport. At least nine people were killed in a strike in southwestern Syria, the news agency said, citing local officials. While Israel has struck other targets in Syria in recent months, this week's attacks marked an escalation in tensions between two key regional players that have both sought to gain political leverage from the turmoil in Syria. Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on Thursday accused Turkey of 'doing their utmost to have Syria as a Turkish protectorate.' Turkey has publicly signaled in the past that it is willing to take on a greater role in Syria. After a regional meeting in early last month, its Defense Ministry said that 'in line with the demands of the new Syrian government, Turkey continues to evaluate the establishment of bases for training purposes.' It did not specify where these bases could be located — however, both Hama and Homs are locations that could host foreign troops. Turkey's Foreign Ministry called Israeli criticism this week 'provocative,' 'aggressive' and 'expansionist,' and urged Israel to 'cease undermining the efforts to stabilize Syria.' Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime, Israel has carried out operations deep into southern Syria, bombarded military bases and taken control of a demilitarized United Nations-patrolled buffer zone on the Syrian side of its border, citing security concerns. The Israeli strikes that killed nine people this week hit near the Israeli-Syrian border, where locals had reported clashes with Israeli forces. Turkey was seen as one of the biggest geopolitical winners when Sharaa-led militants stormed the Syrian capital of Damascus in December, ousting Assad and shocking his Russian and Iranian allies. Before Assad's fall, Turkey had supported various militant groups in Syria, including factions that have fought against U.S.-backed Kurdish forces and that participated in last year's offensive that toppled Assad. Now, Turkey has numerous incentives to help stabilize the interim Syrian government. Ankara hopes to speed up the return of millions of Syrian refugees at a time when Turkey's weak economy has emerged as a key political issue, and Turkish businessmen have in recent months scouted Syria for investment opportunities. Islamic State militants operating in Syria also continue to pose a threat both to Syrian and Turkish targets, and a weak Syrian central government could give rise to calls for Kurdish independence in Syria — a demand Turkey has been particularly determined to suppress. Syria's interim government has made some progress at reining in tensions with Kurdish-led forces. Governmental and Kurdish-led forces exchanged prisoners this week, Sana reported, potentially paving the way for more extensive talks between both sides. But the government around Sharaa has struggled to quell other conflicts. In the wake of coordinated attacks on its security forces, militant groups affiliated with the government deliberately targeted members of the country's Alawite minority in early March, killing more than 100 people in the coastal city of Baniyas alone, Amnesty International found in an investigation that it published on Thursday. The attacks fed regional doubts over Sharaa. In neighboring Israel, some worry that an emboldened Syrian interim government could also curtail Israel's military options. Israeli officials view Sharaa as a 'wolf in sheep's clothing,' Yoni Ben-Menachem, a researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, wrote in an analysis last month. He 'presents himself as a moderate while remaining a jihadist with an unchanged ideology, now seeking to consolidate power with Turkey's backing,' he said, summarizing Israeli officials' thinking. But Israel's strikes in Syria this week could backfire, cautioned Omer Ozkizilcik, a Turkey-focused nonresident fellow with the Atlantic Council. In neighboring countries, they are likely to boost Ankara's arguments that a Turkish military presence could be useful. 'Turkey and Israel by themselves are very unlikely to resolve this,' he said. 'It needs American mediation to find a security mechanism or arrangement between both sides.' Loveday Morris in Berlin and Beril Eski in Istanbul contributed to this report.
Shafaq News
30-03-2025
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Israeli drone downed in Syria as tensions rise
Shafaq News/ On Sunday, Syrian fighters shot down an Israeli drone over the Yarmouk Valley in western Daraa province, as Israeli military activity escalates in southern Syria. The debris landed in open terrain, and no casualties have been reported following the incident, according to Syrian media outlet Daraa 24. Meanwhile, a United Nations delegation reportedly visited the Yarmouk Basin to meet families of victims and wounded residents in the town of Koya, which was struck by an Israeli air raid days earlier. Residents of Saida al-Hanout, a village in southern Al-Quneitra, rejected food aid and surveys distributed by an Israeli patrol, voicing opposition to 'any incursion or normalization with Israel,' the Syrian outlet further noted. Tensions Up High The developments follow continued escalations in Israeli military operations across southern Syria in recent weeks. In a post on X, army spokesperson Avichay Adraee announced that troops from the 810th Brigade, operating under the 210th Division, entered areas of Mount Hermon that had not previously been patrolled by Israeli forces, as part of an effort to 'remove threats and seize hostile equipment.' He published images and video footage from the operation that showed soldiers traversing mountainous terrain and inspecting military infrastructure belonging to "enemy forces." "The army's Alpine Unit uncovered several fortified positions, along with combat equipment and an explosive device weighing several dozen kilograms," he added. #عاجل قوات لواء الجبال داخل مواقع مراقبة تركها الجيش السوري السابق في قمة جبل الشيخ ⭕️داهمت قوات اللواء 810 تحت قيادة الفرقة 210 خلال الأسبوع المنصرم مناطق في قمة جبل الشيخ لم يتحرك فيها جيش الدفاع حتى الان وذلك بهدف ازالة تهديدات ومصادرة وسائل تابعة للعدو في تلك المنطقة.… — افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) March 30, 2025 Mount Hermon, which sits along the Israeli-Syrian border, has seen a rise in military deployments and cross-border activity in recent months amid growing regional tensions. The mountain holds strategic value due to its elevation and visibility over both Israeli and Syrian territory, a factor that military analysts say makes it a critical vantage point for surveillance and control.
LBCI
26-02-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
Israel's growing influence in southern Syria: A strategic push for control
Report by Amal Shehadeh, English adaptation by Mariella Succar Israel's actions in southern Syria resemble its historical treatment of the region, as it encroaches on the territory by gradually taking control, advancing into towns, and conducting airstrikes at will. The country justifies these actions under the pretext of securing what it deems necessary for its security. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz and the military have further threatened to continue these operations. Israel's current strategy aims to go beyond previous efforts, with an agenda to dismantle the agreed Israeli-Syrian border from the 1974 ceasefire. The country seeks to push this boundary deeper into Syrian territory. Following the events of October 7, Israel's security services have developed a comprehensive plan for the entire region. Under the guise of combating terrorism, the plan encompasses neighboring countries, extending to what Israel has called the 'Sunni Axis of Evil' after Ahmad al-Sharaa assumed power in Syria. In its execution, Israel has targeted southern Syria for the same tactics it applied in southern Lebanon during its 18-year occupation. It aims to foster loyalty among groups within the region, with a particular focus on the Druze communities in southern Syria. Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the West Bank, Rasan Aliyan, has been tasked with forging direct relationships with the leadership of southern Syria's Druze towns. The objective is not only to convince them to visit Israel but also to persuade them to accept living under what Israel defines as a "protected area" governed by Israeli security and civilian authority. Areas such as Daraa, Sweida, Al Qunaitra, and other southern regions have increasingly come under Israel's strategic ambitions. While Israel is likely to achieve its goals, this will depend on the response from local populations. Despite the promises of freedom of movement within Israeli-controlled territories and job opportunities in construction and agriculture, these incentives may not be enough to convince the residents of southern Syria to submit to Israel's influence.
