White House is concerned about Israel’s Syria policy and stalled normalization.
According to the Israeli Channel 12 TV, a senior American source revealed that the administration of US President Donald Trump is deeply concerned about the recent military actions of Israel in Syria and believes that these actions could jeopardize the historic opportunity to normalize relations between Damascus and Tel Aviv.
According to this senior American official, the White House has openly warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he “must stop taking military action against Syria.” The official added: With the current trend, Netanyahu will miss a major diplomatic opportunity and will turn the new Syrian government into an enemy of Israel.
Washington’s main concern intensified after the Israeli army’s operation in the village of Beit Jen, southwest of Syria, on Friday. In these Israeli ground and air strikes, at least 20 Syrian civilians were killed, and many more were injured.
American officials claimed that Israel not only did not inform the Trump administration about the operation before taking action in Beit Jen, but also, contrary to past practice, did not inform the security forces in Damascus through military coordination channels.
The Zionist regime’s action provoked anger in Syria and triggered a wave of calls for retaliatory action inside the country.
In this regard, Tom Barak, the US government’s special envoy for Syria, has been holding intensive talks with the Israeli and Syrian sides since Friday to prevent an escalation of tensions. Barak also traveled to Damascus on Monday and met with al-Jolani.
According to the Zionist media, two senior American officials also emphasized that the incident has severely undermined recent progress in secret negotiations to reach a “new security agreement” between Syria and the Zionist regime; an agreement that Washington considers a prelude to Syria’s possible accession to the Abraham Accords.
In this regard, Trump yesterday (Monday) addressed the issue publicly after several days of closed-door protests by American officials against Israeli policies, intervening in a post on the social network “Truth”. He wrote: It is important that Israel maintains a strong and real dialogue with Syria and that nothing happens that prevents Syria from developing into a prosperous country. Ahmed al-Shara (al-Jolani) is working hard to make good things happen and for Syria and Israel to have a long and strong relationship. This is a historic opportunity.
Immediately after the publication of this article, Trump spoke with Netanyahu by phone. The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office also did not mention Syria in its statement, but announced that Trump had invited the Prime Minister of the regime to an early meeting at the White House.
Israeli leaders say that the meeting may take place even before the start of the Christmas holidays on December 25 (January 4); But American officials emphasized that one of the current problems is the management vacuum in the Syrian file in the Israeli cabinet after the resignation of Ron Dermer, Minister of Strategic Affairs and Netanyahu’s right-hand man; it is not yet clear who will be officially responsible for advancing this sensitive file.
The uncoordinated attacks by the Zionist regime on Syria have taken place while Trump has supported the Syrian interim government and even lifted previous sanctions on the country, and is also insisting on expanding the Abraham Accords and starting a peace process between Damascus and Tel Aviv.
It seems that the big difference of views between Washington and Tel Aviv on how to deal with the new Damascus has become one of the most serious challenges of the Middle East policy of Trump’s second term.
Since the fall of the Bashar al-Assad government in Syria, Israel has taken advantage of the security vacuum in the country, in addition to bombing all of the country’s heavy defense installations and warplanes, and has advanced in the Quneitra region in southern Syria and occupied parts of the country’s south, including the strategic heights of “Jabal al-Sheikh.” The bloodiest attack by the Israeli army on Syrian soil in the past year took place on Friday in the town of “Beit Jen.” According to local sources, the attack killed at least 20 Syrian civilians and injured dozens, and created a serious obstacle to the entry of relief forces. The village of Beit Jen is located in the Damascus countryside, and according to Israel, the purpose of the regime’s army’s raid on the area was to arrest wanted members of the Syrian “Islamic Group” who oppose the regime’s occupation of Syria.