17 December 2024
Israel’s deputy FM calls Syrian leader a ‘wolf in sheep’s clothing’
Israel’s deputy foreign minister has cast doubt on the head of the group that ousted former Syrian President Bashar Assad and cast doubt on the extent to which Syria’s new de facto rulers have abandoned their jihadist beliefs.
“These are terrorist organizations and this is a wolf [sheep’s] Clothes,” said Shereen Haskell of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and its leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani.
“It is important to avoid getting trapped in an effort to wipe out jihadists [groups] in Syria. “We know who they are and what their true nature is, even though they may have changed their name, and we understand how dangerous they are to the West,” he said.
Al-Golani, who has now dropped his surname and adopted the real name Ahmed al-Sharaa, fought for al-Qaeda in Iraq after the 2003 US invasion.
He later founded al-Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda subsidiary in Syria that temporarily allied with the so-called Islamic State group.
However, al-Golani later broke away and fought against both jihadist groups, eventually rebranding al-Nusra as the Islamist HTS.
Since seizing Damascus earlier this month, al-Golani has denied plans to impose strict Islamic rule and promised tolerance toward religious minorities.
Criticizing Israel’s recent incursion into Syrian territory beyond the Golan Heights as an “unwarranted increase in territory”, al-Golani also said over the weekend that “after years of conflict and war, Syria’s war-weariness The situation does not allow it.” New conflicts.”
He said: “The priority at this stage is reconstruction and stability, not involvement in disputes that could lead to further destruction.”
