Mouaz Moustafa:
No, the concern was warranted when Bibi Netanyahu’s government was arbitrarily bombing Syria after it had just come out of a horrific war, while the Israeli government, before ever meeting the new Syrian government, calling them all blank terrorists, keep the designations, keep the sanctions.
The concern should have come from the efforts here in the United States to shield President Trump from what opportunity lies in Syria. What is in the best interests of Israel as a state is different what is in the best interests of an Israeli politician, that war ongoing keeps them in office and maybe out of the courtroom.
But what President Trump has done is something that is a service to the United States’ interests and, frankly, interests of everyone in the region, including Israel. As we were meeting with President Sharaa, he was telling us about the reports of these massive Iranian-backed militias numbers that were alongside regime troops on the Iraqi side of the Syrian border, that that was a real problem.
When we came back here just last week, I met with the National Security Council before President Trump went to Saudi Arabia. And I mentioned that this was a real concern. And the National Security Council official that I was meeting with said, I have seen the intelligence reports. It is.
That’s the concern for Israel’s long-term security, having Hezbollah and IRGC in Iran and ISIS on its borders. And, finally, I have to say, right now, and this goes underreported, the new Syrian government, led by President Sharaa, worked directly with the U.S. military on counter-ISIS operations and counter-al-Qaida operations.
It is just ironic that we’re saying this is not a changed man, this is really ISIS with another hat on, when he’s ISIS’ worst enemy in Syria and vice versa.