Israeli FM calls new Syrian government a ‘gang of terrorists’

Sa’ar described the new Syrian government as ‘an Islamist regime aiming to establish unified control over all of Syria.’

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Despite some conciliatory remarks about Israel made by the new Syrian government, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said the new regime is comprised of “a gang of terrorists.”

“Globally, people talk about ‘organized regime change in Syria,’ but it’s not as if a new government was democratically elected to rule all of Syria,” he said.
“Instead, it’s a group of terrorists who initially controlled Idlib, and then took over Damascus and other regions,” Sa’ar said.

Sa’ar’s statements are in contrast to statements by new leaders in Syria that they do not seek conflict with Israel

He continued,”The world is eager to view them as a new and stable regime because many countries want to send the evacuees they are hosting back to Syria.”

However, Sa’ar added,”That’s not the reality. There are ongoing battles with the Alawites along the coastline, explicit threats from [Turkish President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan to dismantle Kurdish autonomy, and harassment of Syria’s Christian community.”

He also emphasized that Syria’s new government “is an Islamist regime aiming to establish unified control over all of Syria.”

Maher Marwan, appointed as the new governor of Damascus, has declared that he seeks peace with Israel, ynet reports.

Marwan, who was appointed by Syria’s de facto leader Ahmad al-Sharaa (formerly Abu Mohammed al-Golani), said in an interview in the US he intended no harm to Israel.

“There exists a people who want coexistence. They want peace. They don’t want disputes. We want peace, and we cannot be an opponent to Israel or an opponent to anyone,” he said in an interview with U.S. public radio network NPR.

At the same time, he acknowledged that, given the tense history between Israel and Syria, Israelis may be a bit hesitant to fully accept this.

“It’s natural for Israel to be worried about certain factions.” He added, ” Israel may have felt fear, so it advanced a little, bombed a little, etc. We have no fear towards Israel, and our problem is not with Israel. And we don’t want to meddle in anything that will threaten Israel’s security or any other country’s security.”