Germany Israel warns the new rulers in Syria

While the rebels in Syria want to ensure stability with a transitional government after the fall of long-term ruler Bashar al-Assad, Israel is issuing sharp warnings to the new rulers.

Any threat to Israel will be fought relentlessly, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made clear. He had previously ordered the almost complete destruction of the neighboring country's military capabilities. The leader of the Islamist group Haiat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) said that Syria was on the way to stability and would be rebuilt.

The fears of Western states that the bloodshed in Syria could continue after the fall of Assad were "unnecessary", HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa told the Sky News channel. He had previously appeared under his combat name Abu Mohammed al-Julani. The Islamist said that the danger came from Assad's government and pro-Iranian militias. "Eliminating them is the solution."

Israeli army: almost 500 targets bombed in Syria

No public statements by the rebel group Al-Sharaas on Israel's massive airstrikes are known so far. According to Israel's army, more than 480 targets in Syria were bombed. According to Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz, the neighboring country's navy was practically completely sunk. As the Syrian rebels have also not commented on the transfer of Israeli troops to the buffer zone on the Golan Heights, it is unclear whether they will accept Israel's control over the occupied territory, wrote the Wall Street Journal.

Netanyahu emphasized that Israel does not want to interfere in Syria's internal affairs. However, he added as a warning: "If the new regime in Syria allows Iran to re-establish itself or allows Iranian weapons to be transported to (Lebanese) Hezbollah, we will react forcefully and demand a high price." What happened before with the Assad regime will then "also happen with this one", Netanyahu said.

Al-Bashir takes over leadership of the transitional government

The current head of government in the rebel stronghold of Idlib, Mohammed al-Bashir, has reportedly taken over the leadership of a transitional government in Syria. He announced that this is planned to remain in office until March 2025. At a meeting in Damascus, rebel leader al-Sharaa and ministers from the current government discussed the transition.

According to reports, both sides are aiming for a smooth transfer of administrative duties. However, terrorism expert Peter Neumann is not alone in doubting whether Syria is really moving towards democracy and the rule of law. It is true that Al-Sharaa renounced the Al-Qaeda terror network years ago, said Neumann on ZDF's "heute journal". However, his group is still Islamist in character and aims to introduce a kind of divine rule in Syria.

Israel wants to ensure that no threat emanates from Syria and has therefore probably destroyed 70 to 80 percent of Syrian military installations, Neumann continued. The communications director of the US National Security Council, John Kirby, said of Israel's military action in Syria: "We recognize, of course, that Israel lives in a difficult neighborhood and - as always - has the right to defend itself". However, "we do not want any actor to act in a way that makes it difficult for the Syrian people to establish a legitimate government", Kirby emphasized.

Scholz talks with Erdogan about the situation in Syria

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the situation in Syria on the phone. "Both agreed that the fall of the dictatorial Assad regime was a very good development", government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit announced in the evening. Now the focus must be on making Syria a safe home for all Syrians. To this end, territorial integrity and sovereignty must be maintained. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also spoke to Erdogan on the phone and said afterwards that she wanted to travel to Turkey next week for talks.

Jake Sullivan, National Security Advisor to US President Joe Biden, is already traveling to Israel today for talks. In addition to the situation in Syria, the talks will also focus on efforts to release the hostages in the Gaza Strip, which is still embattled, said Kirby. Israel continues to wage war there against the Islamist Hamas. Efforts to achieve a ceasefire and release the hostages still held by Hamas have so far been unsuccessful.

UN Emergency Relief Office: Humanitarian situation in Syria remains unstable

Meanwhile, the first steps towards normality are being taken in Syria. Officials in the capital Damascus are concentrating on procuring fuel for buses to get employees to work and repairing power cuts, reported the Wall Street Journal. According to eyewitnesses, employees of the central bank also returned to work.

However, many stores remained closed due to a lack of supplies. There are reports of food shortages in Damascus and many other cities, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The humanitarian situation in the country, which has been ravaged by dictatorship and years of civil war, is unstable. Since the start of the rebels' blitz offensive two weeks ago, the price of bread in cities such as Idlib and Aleppo has risen by 900 percent.

OCHA warned of minefields that restricted people's freedom of movement and the delivery of goods. Hospitals were also overwhelmed by the high number of patients with physical and psychological injuries. Many people were suffering from enormous psychological stress. Children in particular showed signs of trauma.

SDA