Israel says it has destroyed much of Syria’s air defenses. Kretschmer criticizes the debate about Syrians leaving the country. All developments in the news blog.
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- US indicts former Syrian prison chief
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4.50 a.m.: According to medical experts, at least 20 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli air strike on residential buildings in the Nuseirat refugee settlement in the center of the Gaza Strip. Doctors say there are also several children among the victims.
4.30 a.m.: Jordan says it will host a crisis summit on the situation in Syria on Saturday. The Jordanian Foreign Ministry said that current developments in Syria would be discussed.
Ways should be found to support Syria after the fall of long-term ruler Bashar al-Assad. The aim is to initiate an inclusive political process under Syrian leadership that includes all groups in the fragmented country.
The summit would be attended by foreign ministers from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar. The Arab representatives would meet with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Aqaba, Jordan.
3:12 a.m.: After the fall of Syria’s long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad, the situation has stabilized in large parts of the country, according to the UN. However, hostilities continued in areas in the north near Manbij and in the east of the country, reported the United Nations Emergency Relief Office Okha.
There are still reports of victims caused by explosive remnants of war. Several people have been killed by landmines in the past few days. There were also children among them.
While clean-up work is underway in the capital Damascus and many shops and public services are starting to operate again, the situation in the northeast is still confusing. The supply of humanitarian aid there continues to be difficult.
1.12 a.m.: In the United States, the former head of a notorious Syrian prison was indicted on torture allegations on Thursday, according to the US Department of Justice. 72-year-old Samir Ousman Alsheikh, who has lived in the United States since 2020, is accused of personally torturing opponents of the newly overthrown government of ruler Bashar al-Assad, the Justice Department said. He is said to have headed the central prison in Damascus, known colloquially as Adra Prison, from around 2005 to 2008.
In his role, Alsheikh is said to have ordered his subordinates to inflict severe physical and mental pain and suffering on political and other prisoners, and was sometimes complicit in doing so himself. In particular, Alsheikh is said to have ordered some prisoners to the “punishment wing” of Adra Prison, where the prisoners were beaten. They were hanging from the ceiling with their arms outstretched and their lower bodies were stretched, according to a description from the US Department of Justice.
12:10 a.m.: Following the overthrow of the government in Syria by Ankara-backed Islamists, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has stressed the need to protect civilians to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. At a meeting with Erdoğan in Ankara on Thursday, Blinken reiterated “the importance of all actors in Syria respecting human rights, respecting international humanitarian law and taking all possible steps to protect civilians, including members of minorities “said US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.
11.40 p.m.: After the overthrow of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed “deep concern” about the “extensive violations” of Syrian sovereignty and Israeli attacks on the country. Guterres is “deeply concerned by recent and widespread violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Guterres’ spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said on Thursday.
