Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will hold a small security meeting in the coming days on Syria-Lebanon developments, following recent events and President Donald Trump’s remarks about the possibility of Syrian forces entering southern Lebanon, Ynet reported. Israel strongly opposes any Syrian military presence in Lebanon, while security officials fear Damascus may already be taking steps in that direction. Netanyahu called the meeting to prepare for possible scenarios and their impact on the northern front.
In an interview with Fox News, Trump criticized Israel, saying he was disappointed that it has not managed to push Hezbollah away from the border. He also said the IDF “cannot do anything without bringing down buildings,” and claimed he was close to strengthening Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa so that his forces would be the ones to enter southern Lebanon and fight Hezbollah.
After the uproar, al-Sharaa addressed the reports and said Trump was speaking about concern over what is happening in Lebanon and about stopping the war there. He said Trump was referring to Syria’s role in finding a safe solution.
Al-Sharaa stressed that the statement was misunderstood as if Syria were about to invade Lebanon “tomorrow morning.” He added that Syria has a deep problem with Hezbollah but does not want all of Lebanon to die, and said Lebanon cannot remain trapped between civil war and war with Israel. He also said he would sit with Hezbollah if it serves Syrian and Lebanese interests, and argued that real peace with Israel requires Hezbollah to stop seizing the Lebanese state’s authority over war and peace.
