Top diplomats from the United States, Arab League and Turkey met in Jordan on Saturday to discuss ways to support Syria’s transition after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime a week ago. The Syrian representative did not attend.
The collapse of the Assad family’s more than half-century rule comes in a region already reeling from the Israeli-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip and hostilities between Israel and Lebanon-based Hezbollah, despite a tenuous ceasefire. has raised new concerns about instability.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said U.S. officials are in direct contact with the Syrian militant group that led the overthrow of Assad, but that the group remains designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. and others.
The rebel leader did not mention any contacts with the United States in an interview with Syrian TV, but warned about the hundreds of airstrikes Israel has carried out in Syria over the past week.
The United States is also renewing its call for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, where the war has left more than 2 million Palestinians in a severe humanitarian crisis.
Here’s the latest information:
Syrian militant leader warns Israel about airstrikes, but does not seek conflict
DAMASCUS, SYRIA – The head of the Syrian opposition that led the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad says he has no intention of entering into a conflict with Israel. But in his first public comments on Israel in the week since the fall of Assad’s regime, Ahmad al-Shalah said “the pretexts used by Israel are over” regarding airstrikes into Syria in recent days.
“The Israelis have broken the rules of engagement,” al-Shallah said in an interview with Syrian TV on Saturday. Around 400 airstrikes by Israel in recent days have destroyed many Syrian military assets.
Mr. Al-Sharah heads Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS). Excerpts released from his interview do not mention any contacts with the United States, which announced on Saturday that it had been in direct contact with HTS, which it designated a foreign terrorist organization several years ago.
HTS leaders said new authorities in Damascus are in touch with Western embassies and that authorities have plans to begin rebuilding and developing Syria. Details were not disclosed.
He said authorities are giving Russia, Assad’s main supporter, an opportunity to reconsider its relationship with the Syrian people, and that authorities are treating Iran, another Assad supporter, as an enemy. He added that it was not.
Blinken says US has had direct contact with Syrian rebels
Aqaba, Jordan – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says U.S. officials are in direct contact with the Syrian rebel group that led the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad’s government a week ago, but that the group continues to receive direct communications from the U.S. It has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization. states etc.
Blinken is the first US official to publicly acknowledge contact between the Biden administration and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the group that ousted President Assad. Blinken did not provide details about his contacts at a news conference in Jordan, but said the United States could send messages to the group about its actions and how it intends to govern during the transition. said it was important.
Medical personnel say Israeli airstrike kills 10 people in Gaza Strip
DEIR ALBALA, Gaza Strip — At least 10 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike that appeared to have targeted the city council in central Gaza, Palestinian medical officials said Saturday.
Officials said the strike came as officials in south-central Gaza were meeting to coordinate how to receive vehicles provided by the United Arab Emirates. It is said that they attacked a municipal complex.
The complex includes buildings used by the Hamas-run Interior Ministry and is surrounded by a public market that was crowded at the time of the strike.
According to an Associated Press reporter at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital and Morgue, a mother and her 5-year-old daughter were among the dead. The hospital said Diab al-Ghar, the mayor of Deir al-Balah city, was among the dead.
Turkey reopens embassy in Syria
ISTANBUL — Turkey reopened its embassy in Syria on Saturday, becoming the first country to do so since the end of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime last weekend. The Syrian rebels who overthrew Assad received significant support from Türkiye.
For the first time since diplomatic relations were severed in 2012, the Turkish flag was hoisted over Damascus grounds. The embassy ceased operations 12 years ago due to security instability during the Syrian civil war.
During the 13-year civil war, several countries maintained diplomatic relations with Assad’s regime, but others have resumed diplomatic missions in recent years in an effort to normalize relations.
US Secretary of State Blinken concludes regional tour in Jordan
Aqaba, Jordan – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Syria’s new government must be inclusive, respect the rights of women and minorities, reject terrorism and defend the suspected stockpile of Assad-era chemical weapons. He said there was broad agreement among regional partners that things must be secured and destroyed.
Blinken is wrapping up a three-country regional tour in Aqaba, after already visiting Iraq, Turkey and Jordan this week.
Earlier Saturday, Blinken spoke with Geir Pederson, the U.N. special envoy for Syria, to discuss the challenges facing Syria in the coming years and “his determination to work together to support the Syria-led transition, in which the U.N. will play a particularly important role.” There is,” he said. When it comes to providing aid, it’s about protecting minorities. ”
Pederson agreed, saying, “What’s really important in Syria is that we see a credible and inclusive political process that unites all communities in Syria.” And the second point is that we need to ensure that state institutions do not collapse and that humanitarian aid is available as soon as possible. And if we can achieve that, perhaps new opportunities will emerge for the Syrian people. ”
Jordan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Saturday’s meeting, saying ministers would “ensure the rebuilding of Syrian state institutions and the protection of Syria’s unity, territorial integrity, sovereignty, security, stability, and the rights of all its citizens.”
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