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The United States on Thursday said it did not support Israel’s recent military strikes in Syria and urged both sides to de-escalate tensions and reach a lasting cease-fire.
“The United States did not support recent Israeli strikes,” State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters during a press briefing. “We are engaging diplomatically with Israel and Syria at the highest levels, both to address the present crisis and reach a lasting agreement between the two sovereign states.”
Bruce said further investigation is needed into the origins of the current violence, but noted that “the discussions have created a dynamic where the Syrians have withdrawn. Israel has not continued. That has ceased.”
She added that “skirmishes” are ongoing, attributing the escalation to a rivalry between Druze and Bedouin communities in southern Syria.
“The United States unequivocally condemns this violence,” Bruce said. “All parties must step back and engage in meaningful dialogue that leads to a lasting cease-fire.”
Bruce said Washington has led efforts over the past 48 hours to broker “real de-escalation and peace,” and has secured agreements with involved parties on specific steps to end the clashes.
“This will require all parties to deliver on the commitments they have made, and this is what we fully expect them to do,” she said, emphasizing U.S. outreach to all constituencies in Syria.
“We are actively engaging all constituencies in Syria to navigate towards calm and continued discussions on integration and a stable, more prosperous future for all Syrians,” Bruce added.
Fighting erupted June 13 between local Druze armed groups and Bedouin Arab tribes in the southern province of Sweida. The violence intensified, culminating in deadly attacks by Druze fighters on Syrian government forces deployed in the area. Dozens of soldiers were reportedly killed.
Although a temporary cease-fire was reached between government troops and Druze factions, it quickly collapsed. In the aftermath, Israel launched a series of airstrikes targeting Syrian military positions and infrastructure, citing the “protection of Druze communities” as justification.
Many Druze leaders in Syria, however, have rejected foreign intervention and reaffirmed support for a unified Syrian state.
Following the fall of regime leader Bashar al-Assad’s government in December 2024, Israel intensified its air campaign and declared the decades-old 1974 Disengagement Agreement with Syria defunct, along with the buffer zone between the two countries.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump spoke on the phone with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday to address a strike on a Catholic church in the Gaza Strip, according to the White House.
"It was not a positive reaction," spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told reporters about Trump's reaction to the church coming under Israeli fire.
"He called Prime Minister Netanyahu this morning to address the strikes on that church in Gaza, and I understand the prime minister agreed to put out a statement. It was a mistake by the Israelis to hit that Catholic church. That's what the prime minister relayed to the president," said Leavitt.
Three people were killed and several injured when the Israeli army struck the church in northern Gaza on Thursday, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said.
The Patriarchate said nine other people were wounded, including one in critical condition, in the attack that targeted the Catholic Holy Family Church in the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City. Among those injured was the parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, who sustained a light injury, it added.
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