Page 3 - Syria Government

Israeli troops to occupy buffer zone inside Syria anytime soon: Netanyahu

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that Israeli forces will stay in a buffer zone on the Syrian border, seized after the ouster of Syria's President Bashar Assad, until another arrangement is in place that ensures Israel's security. Netanyahu made the comments from the summit of Mount Hermon the highest peak in the area inside Syria, about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the border with the Israel-held Golan Heights. It appeared to be the first time a sitting Israeli leader had set foot that far into Syria. Netanyahu said he had been on the same mountaintop 53 years ago as a soldier, but the summit's importance to Israel's security has only increased given recent events. Israel seized a swath of southern Syria along the border with the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights days after Assad was ousted by rebels last week. Israel's capture of the buffer zone, a roughly 400-square-kilometer (155-square-mile) demilitarised area in Syrian territory, has sparked condemnation, with ...

Syria must succeed; rights of women, minorities should be respected: US

Our message to the Syrian people is this: We want them to succeed and we are prepared to help them do so, US State Department spokesperson Mathew Miller said in a press briefing

Photos of Syria's Assad expose world beyond crafted, repressive rule

Personal photos of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad have surfaced from his abandoned residences, sparking ridicule among Syrians who until days ago were persecuted for criticizing his carefully crafted public image. The intimate and candid photos, reportedly discovered in albums from Assad's mansions in the hills of Damascus and Aleppo, offer a stark contrast to the polished, glamorous image that Assad and his father projected as they led Syria for half a century. Syrians have been fascinated by the background glimpses of a seemingly normal family that held the country in an iron grip and bombed some their fellow citizens regarded as a threat. The sharing of photos has become an extension of the dazed first hours after Assad's ouster a week ago, when everyday Syrians wandered the presidential palace and its disheveled signs of a rapid departure. Assad has been granted asylum in Russia. For many Syrians who had endured forced imprisonment, displacement and oppression under the ..

Syrian Christians mark change with tears as UN envoy asks to end sanctions

In churches across long-stifled Syria, Christians marked the first Sunday services since the sudden collapse of Bashar Assad's regime in an air of transformation. Some were in tears, while others clasped their hands in prayer. They are promising us that government will be formed soon and, God willing, things will become better because we got rid of the tyrant, said one worshiper, Jihad Raffoul. Today, our prayers are for a new page in Syria's future, said another, Suzan Barakat. To help those efforts, the UN envoy for Syria called for a quick end to Western sanctions as the rebel alliance that ousted Assad and sent him into exile in Russia a week ago considers the way forward, along with regional and global powers. Syria has been under deeply isolating sanctions by the United States, the European Union and others for years as a result of Assad's brutal response to what began as peaceful anti-government protests in 2011 and spiralled into civil war. In another sign of yearning for

New Syria: Rebels try to bring normalcy while Syrians vow to speak up

The new head of security arrived at Damascus' international airport with his men, a bearded fighter who marched with other rebels across Syria to the capital. The few maintenance staff who showed up for work huddled around Maj Hamza al-Ahmed, eager for answers about what happens next. They unloaded all their complaints, pent up for years during the rule of President Bashar Assad, which now, inconceivably, is over. They told him they were denied promotions and perks funneled to pro-Assad favorites, that bosses threatened them with prison for working too slowly. They warned him of hardcore Assad supporters among the airport staff, ready to return whenever the facility reopens. As al-Ahmed tried to reassure them, Osama Najm, an engineer, confessed: This is the first time we talk. This was the first week of Syria's transformation after Assad's unexpected fall. Rebels, suddenly in charge, met a population bursting with emotions: excitement at new freedoms; grief over years of repressio

Drug captagon: What it is, how it links to Syria's fallen Assad regime

The drug has the active ingredient fenethylline and was initially marketed for conditions including ADHD and the sleeping disorder narcolepsy

US push for stability in post-Assad Syria: Here's all you need to know

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has wrapped up perhaps his last Middle East as America's top diplomat, with the aim of preventing Syria from spiralling out of control after the sudden ouster of President Bashar Assad. Blinken was one of several senior U.S. officials travelling across the region in the Biden administration's final weeks amid deep uncertainty in Washington and abroad over how Donald Trump will approach the Mideast when he takes office on Jan. 20, 2025. Blinken held meetings Jordan, Turkey and Iraq with the aim of trying to shape the future of post-Assad Syria by forging consensus among regional partners and allies whose interests often diverge. We know that what happens inside of Syria can have powerful consequences well beyond its borders, from mass displacement to terrorism," he told reporters Saturday in Aqaba, Jordan. "And we know that we can't underestimate the challenges of this moment. Here are some takeaways from Blinken's trip: Charting a new course

Top diplomats from US, Arab League, Turkey discuss Syria's power transition

Top diplomats from the United States, the Arab League and Turkey met in Jordan on Saturday to discuss how to assist Syria 's transition after the fall of Bashar Assad's government a week ago. No Syrian representatives attended. The collapse of the Assad family's more than half-century of rule has sparked new fears of instability in a region already shaken by the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and hostilities between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah despite a tenuous ceasefire. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said American officials have been in direct contact with the Syrian insurgent group that led the overthrow of Assad's government, but the group continues to be designated a foreign terrorist organization by the United States and others. The insurgent leader in an interview with Syrian TV didn't mention contact with the US, but he warned Israel about the hundreds of airstrikes it has carried out in Syria in the past week. The US is also making a renewed push for a ceasefire

Deception, despair marked Syrian Prez Assad's final hours before fleeing

Assad told his presidential office manager on Saturday when he finished work he was going home but instead headed to the airport, according to an aide in his inner circle

Israeli forces to 'temporarily' remain in seized Syrian buffer zone

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cited border security concerns for the deployment following the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime and subsequent HTS takeover

Syrians in Germany show no rush to leave as their labour is in demands

Syrian employers, trade unions and business associations are now speaking up to stress how much they are needed in a German economy facing deep labour shortages

Global chemical weapons watchdog holds emergency meeting on Syria's stock

The global chemical weapons watchdog opened an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the situation in Syria over concerns about the country's stockpile of toxic chemicals in the wake of the overthrow of President Bashar Assad. The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons told Syria on Monday the country is under obligations to comply with rules to safeguard and destroy dangerous substances, such as chlorine gas, after rebels entered the capital, Damascus, at the weekend. Assad's regime denied using chemical weapons but the OPCW found evidence indicating their repeated use by Syria in the grinding civil war. Earlier this year, the organisation found the Islamic State group had used mustard gas against the town of Marea. In a rare move, the OPCW's executive council called the meeting, hoping that under a new government, some of its 80 inspectors may be allowed to pursue investigations into Syria's chemical weapons program. Members of the ousted Syrian government plan t

Syria's interim PM Bashir vows to rebuild country amid financial crisis

Two senior U.S. congressmen, a Republican and a Democrat, wrote a letter calling for Washington to suspend some sanctions on Syria. The most punishing war-time U.S. sanctions are up for renewal this

'You'll end up like Assad': How Israel backed its warning to Syrian rebels

Israel Defence Forces have carried out over 350 strikes in Syria, reportedly eliminating up to 80 per cent of the ousted Assad regime's strategic military capabilities under operation 'Bashan Arrow'

From book on Russian military to pills: What rebels found in Assad's palace

During their invasion of Bashar al-Assad's palace, Syrian rebel fighters made several discoveries, including luxury cars, all-terrain vehicles, motorcycles, and an armoured truck

Refugees return to Syria as rebels appoint caretaker prime minister

In a brief address on state television on Tuesday, Mohammed al-Bashir, a figure little known across most of Syria, said he would lead the interim authority until March 1

We do not have any immediate plans: US on reopening embassy in Syria

Since ouster of Bashar al-Assad days ago, US has repeatedly said that it is waiting to evaluate the actions of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the main victorious opposition group in Syria before deciding

In first contact, US officials urge Syrian rebels to support inclusive govt

US has sent messages to the group to help guide early efforts to establish a formal governing structure for the country

Rebel-backed Mohammed al-Bashir takes charge as Syria's interim PM

In a brief address on state television, Mohammed al-Bashir said he would lead the interim authority until March 1

Who is Abu Mohammed al-Golani, and what his rise means for Syria's future?

Ahmad al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, has long sought to distance himself from his extremist roots as the 42-year-old leader of HTS, the group that ousted Syrian President Bashar Assa