Syrian rebel leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, better known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, told Reuters Wednesday that the jihadist group he leads, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), is working with international organizations to secure possible sites where chemical weapons may be located.
HTS, which is rooted in al-Qaeda’s Syria branch but has in recent years sought to moderate its image, had already said that it will not use those weapons under any circumstances.
Shaara said in a written statement shared exclusively with Reuters by his office that the group is now working to “dissolve the security forces of the previous regime and close the notorious prison,” where the government of toppled dictator Bashar al-Assad is estimated to have held tens of thousands of detainees.
He reiterated that he will form a government of technocrats. The current transitional government is set to rule until March 2025, according to a statement by his group.
The Pentagon, in response, said the US welcomes his comments about securing potential chemical weapons sites, but cautioned that “actions have to meet words as well.”
Golani’s comments came as Israel has carried out massive strikes targeting the Assad regime’s military assets, including chemical weapons sites, amid fears that former Syrian army weaponry could fall into the hands of hostile forces in the country, as well as the Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
People sit across from a poster depicting Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad in a gas mask during an event in the rebel-held northern city of Afrin, on August 20, 2023, marking the 10-year anniversary of chemical attacks that killed over 1,400 people in Ghouta, near the capital. (Rami al Sayed/AFP)
A monitor of the Syrian civil war reported fresh Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday that targeted Assad-linked sites in the coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus.
“Israeli warplanes launched air strikes” targeting “military sites” including “the Latakia port” as well as warehouses in neighboring Tartus province, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, adding that “Israeli warplanes continue to destroy what remains of Syria’s military arsenal for the fourth consecutive day since the fall of the former regime.”
Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Israeli counterpart Israel Katz during a phone call Wednesday that it was important for the United States and Israel to be in close consultation over events unfolding in Syria, the Pentagon said.
Austin told Katz that Washington was monitoring developments in Syria and that it backed a peaceful, inclusive political transition, according to the Pentagon. He added that the US would continue its mission to prevent the Islamic State extremist group from reestablishing a safe haven in Syria.
“Secretary Austin emphasized the importance of close consultation between the United States and Israel on events in Syria,” the Pentagon said.
The Pentagon also said that Austin discussed with Katz attempts to secure Israeli hostages in Gaza and urged Israel to improve the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave where Israel’s military is fighting against Hamas, whose terror attack on October 7, 2023, sparked the ongoing war.
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