The situation at a glance: Upheaval in Syria: cause for joy, cause for concern

A week after the overthrow of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, Western and Arab politicians are calling for a peaceful transition to new political leadership in the civil war country. At the same time, regional powers such as Israel and Turkey are indicating that they intend to use the current power vacuum in Syria for their own interests. The new leadership in Damascus says it wants to devote itself to reconstruction. A week ago on Sunday, a rebel alliance led by Islamists took power.

Skepticism towards rebels in Damascus

Observers in the Arab world have mixed feelings about the Syrian rebel alliance. “We hear from them sensible and rational statements about unity and not imposing a system on all Syrians,” Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Sajid Al Nahjan, said at a security conference in Abu Dhabi.

“But on the other hand, the nature of these new forces, their connections to the (Islamist) Muslim Brotherhood and al-Qaeda are very worrying indicators,” the London-based Internet newspaper thelevantnews.com quoted him as saying. But one must approach the new Syria both optimistically and with caution.

Gargash criticized Israel for its campaign to destroy Syria’s military capabilities. “From an Israeli perspective that may be right, but I think it’s a stupid policy.” Rather, one should avoid “mistakes made in the past”. The adviser alluded to the American invasion of Iraq in 2003. The US military promoted the disintegration of the Iraqi army after the overthrow of dictator Saddam Hussein, after which the country sank into years of civil war chaos.

Israel bombs large weapons depots

Meanwhile, Israel continued its airstrikes on military installations in the Damascus area. On Saturday alone, the air force bombed 35 targets, the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. These include mountain tunnels in which the Assad government’s military had stored rockets and heavy ammunition. The Israeli military justifies its attacks by saying that it wants to prevent the stockpile of war material from falling into the hands of Islamists.

The leader of the Islamist insurgents in Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, spoke critically about Israeli military operations in Syria for the first time after the victory of his rebel alliance. Israel’s pretexts are unjustified, said the head of the strongest rebel group Haiat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) on the opposition channel Syria TV. Until recently he appeared under his nom de guerre Mohammed al-Julani.

According to the Observatory, Israel has not only carried out 430 air strikes since the coup in Syria, but has also deployed troops to areas beyond the ceasefire line in the Golan Heights. Israeli soldiers moved into a so-called buffer zone, which is under UN surveillance under the 1974 ceasefire agreement.

Al-Sharaa said: “The Israelis have clearly crossed the ceasefire line in Syria in a way that may lead to unnecessary escalation in the region.” At the same time, he emphasized that Syria’s new leadership wanted to concentrate on reconstruction and not allow itself to be drawn into new conflicts.

Report: Israel and Jordan held secret talks on Syria

According to a media report, representatives from Israel and Jordan have met for secret talks about the situation in Syria. The talks focused, among other things, on the security concerns of the two countries, the news portal “Axios” reported, citing several Israeli officials. Both countries border Syria, which is particularly fragile in this phase of upheaval. The talks were attended by the director of the Shin Bet domestic intelligence service and high-ranking army officers on the Israeli side, and the director of the secret service and high-ranking Jordanian military commanders on the Jordanian side.

At a summit in the Jordanian Red Sea resort of Aqaba, Arab and international diplomats had previously expressed their support for the new Syria. “We all stand with Syria in the reconstruction phase after years of killing,” said Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi. He spoke of a historic moment.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters: “We agreed that the transition process must be Syrian-led and Syrian-responsible and should produce an inclusive and representative government.” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said: “The next few days will not be easy, but Turkey will continue to stand side by side with the Syrian people.” Turkey, which supports the victorious rebels, is seen as the most influential foreign actor after the change of power.

The foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Qatar were also present at the meeting. The UN special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, also took part in the special summit. Syrian representatives were not present.

Mayor in dual role as Hamas cadre?

In the Gaza Strip, Israel continued its attacks against pockets of resistance of the Islamist Hamas. Among other things, the air force bombed the community center in the city of Deir al-Balah, reported the Palestinian news agency Wafa. Dozens of displaced people were accommodated there. At least ten people were killed and many more were injured.

The mayor is said to be among those killed. The information could not initially be independently verified. Israel’s army announced a little later that the mayor had also worked as a cadre in Hamas’s military wing. He supported the Islamist militia’s combat operations – in a way that was not described in detail. The military said the attack was aimed at him. This information could not initially be independently verified.

Angry hostage relatives

Around 2,000 people demonstrated again in front of the Israeli army headquarters in Tel Aviv for a hostage deal and for an end to the Gaza war. Relatives of the hostages kidnapped by Islamists in the Gaza Strip made angry appeals to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Times of Israel reported.

The speakers accused the head of government of deliberately delaying negotiations on the release of the hostages from the Islamist Hamas in order to be able to continue the war in the Gaza Strip. They accuse him of acting this way out of consideration for his right-wing extremist and ultra-religious coalition partners. They strive for permanent occupation and Jewish settlement of the Gaza Strip. Netanyahu says the hostages can only be freed through military pressure.