Al-Sharaa Warns of New Disturbances in the Middle East if His Country Does Not Reach an Agreement with Israel

SadaNews - Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa warned in New York of the risk of new disturbances in the Middle East if his country and Israel do not reach a security agreement.

 

Al-Sharaa, who came to power after the ousting of former President Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, will become the first Syrian president to address the United Nations General Assembly since 1967 on Wednesday.

During a dialogue session organized in New York by the American research center "Middle East Institute," al-Sharaa said, "We are not the ones causing problems for Israel. We fear Israel, not the other way around."

He added, "There are multiple risks associated with the fact that Israel is delaying negotiations and continues to violate our airspace and encroach on our lands."

Al-Sharaa refused to engage in any discussion about the division of his country at a time when Israel continues its incursions into southern Syria, where it says it is defending the interests of the Druze minority.

The Syrian president stated that "Jordan is under pressure, and any talk about the division of Syria will harm Iraq and harm Turkey."

He added that "this matter will bring us all back to square one," pointing out that his country has just come out of a civil war that lasted a decade and a half.

Officially, Syria and Israel are still in a state of war, but the two countries began direct negotiations after the fall of the Assad regime, which included bilateral meetings at the ministerial level.

Al-Sharaa had ruled out any Syrian recognition of Israel at the present time on Monday.