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Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa addressed various issues including Syria's future relations with Israel in an interview with the Jewish Journal. “The era of endless tit-for-tat bombings must end,” he stated plainly, adding: “No nation prospers when its skies are filled with fear. The reality is, we have common enemies — and we can play a major role in regional security.”
Al-Sharaa also expressed his willingness to return to the 1974 Disengagement Agreement—not merely as a ceasefire line, but as the foundation for mutual restraint and protection of civilians, especially the Druze communities in southern Syria and the Golan Heights.
However, he firmly rejected the idea of immediate normalization with Israel, instead voicing openness to future talks grounded in international law and respect for Syrian sovereignty. “Peace must be earned through mutual respect, not fear,” he said, as quoted by the magazine.
Yet, within days of these statements, southern Syria witnessed a dramatic escalation: Israeli warplanes carried out airstrikes on targets inside Syrian territory in response to the launch of two rockets toward the occupied Golan Heights. Israel was quick to place full blame on Syria's president.
Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz declared in an official statement: “We hold the Syrian president directly responsible for any threat or attack targeting Israel,” vowing a “comprehensive response soon.”
Two rockets launched from southern Syria landed in open areas near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, Israel’s public broadcaster KAN reported Tuesday. According to Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth daily, warning sirens were activated in the communities of Haspin and Ramat Magshimim in the southern Golan Heights.
“Details are being investigated,” the daily quoted an Israeli army spokesperson as saying. Residents in the affected areas reported hearing explosions shortly after sirens were triggered, Yedioth Ahronoth said. The Syrian News Agency (SANA) reported that “the Israeli occupation targeted the Yarmouk area with artillery fire” but provided no details.
The Israeli army said its artillery “struck in southern Syria following the projectiles launched toward Israeli territory.” The Syrian Foreign Ministry’s media office said in a statement carried by Saudi Arabia’s state-run Al-Ikhbariya TV channel that “we have not verified the accuracy of the reports about rockets launched toward the Israeli side.”
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