UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed to the international community on Saturday to support the people of Syria and criticized Israel's actions in the country's south as he began his first visit to the Arab nation of his tenure. Guterres' visit is also the first by a UN secretary-general to Damascus, the capital, since 2009, which came before the start of a civil war that killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions. "No country emerges from a very severe conflict and rebuilds itself on its own," Guterres said at a press conference, per Reuters, adding, "We must help Syria in its determination and resolve to do so."
It's been almost two years since the fall of Syrian strongman Bashar Assad. Shortly after his arrival, Guterres held talks with Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, before touring the old quarter of Damascus and the famous Umayyad Mosque. The UN chief also visited the notorious Saydnaya military prison, a sprawling complex just north of Damascus that has become synonymous with some of the worst atrocities committed under the Assad family's rule. "I appeal to the international community to spare no effort to support the people of Syria," said Guterres, who is scheduled to visit the UN force deployed along the border with Israel.
After taking power, al-Sharaa said he had no desire for a conflict with Israel. But Israel was suspicious of the new Islamist-led leadership and quickly moved to take control of the buffer zone, per the AP. Israel has launched hundreds of airstrikes on Syrian military facilities and periodic incursions into villages outside the buffer zone, which have sometimes led to violent confrontations with residents. Speaking about the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, a region considered occupied Syrian territory by the international community, Guterres said the UN recognizes "without limitations, that the Golan Heights belong to Syria." Guterres said Israeli violations of Syrian sovereignty and territorial integrity must cease.
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