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Israel’s defense minister said that he does “not trust” Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, Anadolu reported on Saturday.
Speaking during a meeting with US Senator Ted Cruz in Washington, Israel Katz claimed that Sharaa would use what he called “jihadist groups” against Israel in the future.
“We only trust God and the IDF (Israeli army) to protect the State of Israel,” Katz said in his comments carried by The Jerusalem Post.
Mentioning the main rulers of Syria’s defunct 61-year Baath regime, which ended last December, he added: “I did not trust (Hafez) Assad the father, nor (Bashar) Assad the son, and certainly do not trust a leader like Sharaa, who relies on jihadist groups that he operates against minorities in Syria, such as the Druze now, and tomorrow he could use them against Israeli settlements in the Golan Heights.”
Israel has illegally occupied Syria’s Golan Heights since 1967.
On Saturday, the Syrian presidency announced a comprehensive and immediate ceasefire in Suwayda following days of unrest in the southern province.
On July 13, clashes broke out between Bedouin Arab tribes and armed Druze groups in Suwayda. Violence escalated and Israeli airstrikes followed, including on Syrian military positions and infrastructure in Damascus.
Israel cited the need to protect Druze communities as a pretext for its attacks.
However, most Druze leaders in Syria have publicly rejected any foreign interference and reaffirmed their commitment to a unified Syrian state.
Following the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime in December 2024, Israel intensified its air campaign in Syria and declared the buffer zone between the two countries defunct alongside the 1974 Disengagement Agreement.
Bashar Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia in December, ending the Baath Party regime, which had been in power since 1963.
A new transitional administration led by Sharaa was formed in Syria in January.