Great Britain Israel wants to change the face of the Middle East
After the fall of Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad, the rebel alliance is paving the way for a transitional government.
10.12.2024, 05:12
SDA
Following a top-level meeting in the capital Damascus, Mohammed al-Bashir, previously head of government in the rebel stronghold of Idlib, has been tasked with forming a new government, several Arab media reported. Meanwhile, according to activists, Israel flew its heaviest attacks in Syria to date - apparently to destroy the Assad government's military installations. According to unconfirmed media reports, there are Israeli tanks near Damascus.
Israel is in the process of "changing the face of the Middle East", said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the evening. Assad's Syria was "the most important link in Iran's axis of evil". The collapse of Assad's rule was a "direct consequence of the heavy blows" that Israel had dealt to the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Shia militia Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran. However, the battle is not yet over.
Netanyahu: We want a different Syria
"The state of Israel is establishing itself as a center of power in our region in a way that has not been the case for decades," said Netanyahu. "We want a different Syria", which would benefit both Israel and the people of Syria, he said. Israel had previously deployed forces to the buffer zone on the occupied Golan Heights and other locations, including on the Syrian side of Mount Hermon. It was a temporary measure.
After deliberations of the UN Security Council in New York behind closed doors, Russian UN Ambassador Vasily Nebenzia told journalists: "The Council more or less agreed on the need to preserve the territorial integrity and unity of Syria, to ensure the protection of civilians and to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches the population in need". The Council met at Russia's request.
UN Security Council: preserve Syria's territorial integrity
"Everyone has been surprised by the events, everyone, including the members of the Council," said Nebensja following the consultations. "So we have to wait, observe and assess how the situation will develop." According to the White House, outgoing US President Joe Biden emphasized in a telephone call with the King of Jordan his "full support for a Syrian-led transition process under the auspices of the United Nations" in accordance with a UN resolution.
The political transition in Syria is already underway and is being managed internally, the magazine "Foreign Policy" quoted four sources connected to the rebel alliance. A political transition process led by the United Nations is unnecessary and is rejected. "We refuse to fall into the traps of the past," one of the sources was quoted as saying.
The Baath Party of ousted ruler Assad wants to support the political transition. "We will be in Syria for a transitional phase with the aim of defending the unity of the country," said the party's secretary general, Ibrahim al-Hadid, according to Arab media. Local leaders in Kardaha, the place of origin of the Assad family in the Alawite heartland, also declared their support for the rebel militias.
Scholz on the phone with Macron
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron spoke on the phone about the situation in Syria. "Both agreed that they were prepared to work together with the new rulers on the basis of fundamental human rights and the protection of ethnic and religious minorities," said government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit in Berlin. It is important to preserve Syria's territorial integrity and sovereignty.
"The Syrian people must decide their own path and their own future," said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a speech in Washington. At the same time, he emphasized that the USA had "clear and enduring interests in Syria". The aim is to prevent the Islamic State (IS) terrorist militia from gaining strength in Syria and to ensure that weapons of mass destruction remaining in Syria do not "fall into the wrong hands".
Israel massively attacks Syria's military facilities
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the US ally Israel attacked research centers, weapons depots, naval vessels, airports and air fleets in Syria. After the airstrikes on a research center, residents reported a strong smell of gas, according to eyewitnesses. Assad had repeatedly used poison gas against civilians and rebels during the civil war. Syria's air defenses in Damascus, Homs, Hama, Latakia and Daraa were also put out of action by Israel's attacks, the report continued.
These were the "heaviest attacks (by Israel) in the history of Syria", the head of the monitoring center, Rami Abdel-Rahman, told the German Press Agency. The organization, which is based in the UK, relies on informants in Syria. When asked, Israel's military did not comment on the attacks. Everything that the Syrian army has held and built up over decades has been destroyed, said a military reporter for the Israeli army radio station.
Italy and the UK also suspend asylum procedures
Meanwhile, the UK and Italy are also temporarily suspending asylum procedures for people from Syria. This follows the example of other European partners, announced the Italian right-wing government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. In Germany, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) also stopped all decisions on asylum applications from Syria for the time being.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hopes that more refugees will voluntarily return to their home country once stability returns to Syria. To ensure that this happens in an orderly manner, he has opened another border crossing in the southern Turkish province of Hatay. Turkey has taken in the most refugees from Syria worldwide, with around three million currently living in the country according to UN figures.
White Helmets: No more prisoners in Assad's "slaughterhouse"
According to activists, there are now no more prisoners in Syria's notorious Saidnaya military prison following the fall of the Assad government. The systematic search of the huge complex north of Damascus for secret cells and hidden cellars has now been completed. At the same time, the members of the Syrian Civil Defense known as the White Helmets expressed their sympathy for the many families who had hoped in vain that missing relatives would be found alive in the prison after Assad's fall.
