Damascus governor Maher Marwan, in an interview with AFPTV, Dec. 15, 2024. (Credit: Bakr Alkasem/AFP)
In an interview with the U.S. broadcaster NPR on Dec. 26, Damascus newly appointed Governor Maher Marwan discussed the relationship between post-Assad Syria and Israel.“We have no fear towards Israel, and our problem is not with Israel,” Marwan said. He then added, “We want peace, and we cannot be an opponent to Israel or an opponent to anyone.” Read more 'Israel's messianic claims to the Golan are a very recent historical invention' Marwan also said that Israel’s initial fears following the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad were “natural,” pointing to Israel’s sporadic airstrikes in Syria.These remarks came nearly 20 days after a rebel offensive — led in part by the radical Islamist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which had dominated the northwestern enclave of Idlib — culminated in the fall of Damascus and the ousting of...
In an interview with the U.S. broadcaster NPR on Dec. 26, Damascus newly appointed Governor Maher Marwan discussed the relationship between post-Assad Syria and Israel.“We have no fear towards Israel, and our problem is not with Israel,” Marwan said. He then added, “We want peace, and we cannot be an opponent to Israel or an opponent to anyone.” Read more 'Israel's messianic claims to the Golan are a very recent historical invention' Marwan also said that Israel’s initial fears following the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad were “natural,” pointing to Israel’s sporadic airstrikes in Syria.These remarks came nearly 20 days after a rebel offensive — led in part by the radical Islamist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which had dominated the northwestern enclave of Idlib — culminated in the fall of...