Trump envoy accuses Israel of ‘occupying’ Golan, ignoring president’s recognition of Israeli sovereignty

Defying President Trump’s recognition of Israeli sovereignty, US Ambassador Tom Barrack claims Israel is occupying the Golan Heights.

By David Rosenberg, World Israel News

US Ambassador to Turkey and special presidential envoy for Syria Tom Barrack claimed Israel is occupying the Golan Heights and described the territory as Syrian, putting him directly at odds with President Donald Trump’s recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the strategic plateau.

Barrack made the remarks during a wide-ranging interview with Lebanese-Australian entrepreneur Mario Nawfal published Friday.

“In the Golan, with Syria, they still occupy the Golan against the UN resolutions, against all the international order, which has said the Golan is Syria’s,” Barrack said.

The comments prompted a sharp response from Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, who said Barrack’s remarks contained “inaccuracies and positions that contradict” Trump’s own position on the Golan Heights.

Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and extended Israeli law, jurisdiction and administration to the territory in 1981.

UN Security Council Resolution 497, adopted unanimously that year, declared the Israeli decision “null and void and without international legal effect.” Most countries continue to regard the Golan Heights as occupied Syrian territory.

The United States broke with that international consensus during Trump’s first term.

On March 25, 2019, Trump signed a presidential proclamation formally recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, declaring that “the United States recognizes that the Golan Heights are part of the State of Israel.”

The proclamation has not been rescinded.

Earlier this month, Colombia became only the second country after the United States to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

The Colombian Foreign Ministry said maintaining Israeli control of the territory was important to the country’s ability to defend itself against regional threats.

Barrack’s remarks therefore represented an unusual public contradiction between a senior Trump envoy and a signature Middle East policy adopted personally by the president.

The disagreement emerged as Barrack also clashed with Israeli officials over Israel’s recent strike on Syria’s Abu al-Duhur airbase.

Israel said it attacked the facility because Syria was on the verge of violating understandings by allowing Turkey to establish a military presence there.

Barrack disputed key elements of Israel’s account and said the United States had found no evidence that the Turkish deployment described by Israel was actually taking place.

He also said Washington had not received advance warning of the Israeli attack.

Katz rejected that claim, saying Israel had shared intelligence with appropriate US officials before the strike and had also warned senior Syrian officials.

“Simultaneously, we transferred the intelligence reports to the relevant authorities in the US,” Katz said.

Barrack suggested that one possible explanation for the strike was a breakdown in communication within the Israeli security establishment. But he also floated a far more provocative theory: that Israel might deliberately have tried to trigger a confrontation with Turkey.

“One theory is they simply tried to bait Turkey,” Barrack said. “It’s a very aggressive move, but one that might play well going into elections.”

Israel is scheduled to hold national elections in October.

Barrack warned that the episode could have brought Israel and Turkey dangerously close to direct military confrontation.

“When they see these jets coming towards the border and they don’t know what the purpose, direction or intention is, they start to say, ‘We’re going to have to scramble our own,’” he said of the Turkish military.

“The unintended consequence of a mistake could be really consequential,” Barrack added.

Turkey has substantially expanded its influence in Syria since the fall of Bashar Assad’s government in late 2024 and has developed close security ties with the government of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa. Ankara has been training Syrian forces and providing military equipment and logistical assistance.

Israel has viewed Turkey’s growing presence in Syria with increasing concern and has sought to prevent the deployment of Turkish military capabilities that it believes could threaten Israeli security.

Barrack also argued during the interview that Iran and Hezbollah would ultimately have to be involved in efforts to reach a lasting settlement in Lebanon.

“How is it going to go away if you don’t have Hezbollah and Iran involved?” he asked.

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