Syrian leader lashes out at Israel in UN speech, says Golan is inseparable part of Syria

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Syria’s interim president harshly criticized Israel’s occupation of southern Syria and said the Golan Heights is an inseparable part of his country.

In a speech to the U.N. General Assembly, Ahmad al-Sharaa said that Israel has carried out more than 500 air and artillery strikes on the country since he took power nearly two years ago. Israel has also carried out 1,200 land incursions and detained nearly 300 people, he said.

Al-Sharaa also condemned Israel’s control over the Golan Heights, which it captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed in 1981.

In 2019, U.S. President Donald Trump recognized Israeli sovereignty over the territory, reversing decades of U.S. policy. The United Nations and most of the international community consider the territory occupied Syrian land and do not recognize Israel’s annexation.

“No attempts at imposing a fait accompli can undermine the legitimacy of our state, the sovereignty of our law, or the force of international law,” al-Sharaa said. “The Golan will remain a Syrian land.”

Israel has occupied a portion of southern Syria since Assad was toppled, calling it a defensive move to prevent potential attacks on its territory.

Al-Sharaa said Syria is committed to a 1974 agreement that established a demilitarized separation zone between Israeli and Syrian forces, stationing a U.N. peacekeeping force there to maintain calm.

He called on Israeli forces to withdraw to the lines of Dec. 8, 2024, the day when insurgents he led removed longtime leader Bashar Assad from power and Israel began sending in forces.

On Tuesday, al-Sharaa jokingly said while speaking at an Atlantic Council event that he has asked Trump why he doesn’t give Israel New Jersey instead of the Golan Heights.