For weeks, Israel has engaged in back-channel talks over a diplomatic agreement with the Syrian government. Its strikes on Damascus this week highlight a lack of strategic clarity.
President Ahmed al-Shara said the airstrike on Damascus threatened to escalate sectarian violence, in his sharpest criticism of Israel since he came to power.
Druse militiamen have been fighting with Bedouins in the Sweida Province, and Syrian government forces and the Israeli military are getting involved.
Syria announced a cease-fire after deadly sectarian clashes in Sweida, near the Israeli border, and Israeli airstrikes on Damascus, the capital.
The violence underscores the government’s challenge to assert nationwide control as ethnic and religious tensions simmer after the end of the civil war.
The violence underscores the government’s challenge to assert nationwide control as ethnic and religious tensions simmer after the end of the civil war.
The longtime enemies have opened contacts, reflecting a power shift across a Middle East in which they have newfound common ground: antipathy for Iran.
The longtime enemies have opened contacts, reflecting a power shift across a Middle East in which they have newfound common ground: antipathy for Iran.
Thomas J. Barrack Jr., the U.S. ambassador to Turkey, says Washington is facilitating the discussions and prioritizing economic development over nation-building in the Middle East.
U.S. officials said sanctions against targets such as its central bank would end, but they would remain on Syria’s former dictator, Bashar al-Assad.