Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Sheibani said on Sunday that Israeli attacks on Syrian territory “make any path to normalization difficult,” amid ongoing talks for weeks to reach a security agreement between Damascus and Tel Aviv.

Al-Sheibani told CNN that “Israel responds to our pursuit of peace with raids and threats.”

Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on December 8, 2024, Israel has violated Syria’s sovereignty by bombing and expanding its occupation of lands in the south, despite the Syrian administration showing no aggressive intent towards Tel Aviv and stating this on several occasions.

The Syrian foreign minister pointed out that “Israel obstructs the building of the Syrian state and fuels sectarian violence,” affirming that “Syria does not pose a threat to anyone in the region, including Israel.”

Al-Sheibani said that “Israel supported outlaws” in Syria, which “prevented us from resolving the problem between the Bedouins and Druze,” referring to clashes that occurred months ago in Sweida province, where Tel Aviv intervened to support the Druze.

He added that Israel’s actions “only complicated matters and put the Druze in a very difficult and embarrassing position,” noting that Israel “obstructed our efforts when we faced an escalation in sectarian violence in the south of the country.”

In July, Sweida in southern Syria witnessed armed clashes lasting a week between Druze groups, Bedouin tribes, and government forces, leaving hundreds dead, followed by a ceasefire agreement that took effect on the 19th of that month.

The Syrian government has been making intensive efforts to maintain security in the country since the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, after 24 years in power.

Al-Sheibani said that Israeli strikes on Syria after Assad’s fall “were shocking to us,” affirming that “a strong and united Syria will be beneficial for regional security and this will benefit Israel.”

The Syrian foreign minister praised “Washington’s stance towards Damascus since the day of liberation,” considering it “very positive and widely welcomed by Syrians.”

Last Wednesday, President Ahmad Al-Shar’a told the United Nations General Assembly that his country has transformed from a state exporting crises to a historic opportunity to establish stability, peace, and prosperity in the entire region.

Since 1967, Israel has occupied most of the Syrian Golan Heights and exploited the new situation after Assad’s fall by occupying the Syrian buffer zone, declaring the collapse of the disengagement agreement between the two sides in 1974.

Reuters reported two days ago, citing four unnamed sources, that efforts to reach a security agreement between Syria and Israel stalled at the last moment due to Israel’s demand to open a “humanitarian corridor” to Sweida province in southern Syria, which Damascus rejected as a violation of its sovereignty.