JERUSALEM, Israel – Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa made history as the first Syrian leader to visit the White House. President Trump indicated it was a good meeting and that the former jihadi is willing to join forces to fight ISIS, advancing peace in the Middle East.
President Trump called Al-Sharaa a "tough guy" from a "tough place" and a "very strong leader."
"I like him. I get along with him, the president, the new president in Syria," Trump stated, "And we'll do everything we can to make Syria successful because that's part of the Middle East. We have peace now in the Middle East, the first time that anyone can remember that ever happening."
Trump lifted sanctions imposed on Syria for decades after Al-Sharaa, the former Al Qaeda terrorist, toppled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad last year, ending the decades-long reign of the Assad regime.
The U.S. leader would like to see Syria become a successful nation, and he thinks al-Sharaa can do it.
"We have to make Syria work. Syria is a big part of the Middle East," Trump said. "And I will tell you, I think it's working really well. We're working also with Israel on, you know, getting along with Syria, getting along with everybody. And that's working amazingly."
In an interview with Fox News, al-Sharaa mentioned that he doesn't see Syria entering the Abraham Accords with Israel now because the situation in his country is different from conditions in other countries.
"Syria has borders with Israel, and Israel occupies the Golan Heights since 1967. We are not going to enter into a negotiation directly, right now. Maybe the United States administration, with President Trump, will help us reach this kind of negotiation," the Syrian leader said.
Known in the Bible as Bashan, the Golan Heights was given to the Israelite half-tribe of Manasseh. Israel regained control of the Golan Heights in the 1967 Six-Day War. During his first term, Trump recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Al-Sharaa and Trump discussed the future of Syria and changing how the country is viewed.
"We talked about the investment opportunities in the future in Syria, so that Syria is no longer looked at as a security threat; it is now looked at as a geopolitical ally, and it's a place where the United States can have great investments, especially extracting gas," al-Sharaa said.
According to reports, Syria confirmed that it would join the global coalition against ISIS, though no announcement has yet been made.
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In Jerusalem, Trump advisor Jared Kushner met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and discussed the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
Israeli Government Spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian explained, "The two discussed phase one, which we are currently still in, to bring our remaining hostages, and the future of phase two of this plan, which includes the disarming of Hamas, demilitarizing Gaza, and ensuring Hamas will have no role in the future of Gaza ever again. Phase two also includes the establishment of the International Stabilization Force (ISF)."
Kushner was helping lead talks to secure safe passage for 150-200 Hamas terrorists trapped in tunnels on the Israeli side of the Yellow Line. Bedrosian refuted Turkey's claim that the terrorists are civilians.
"Turkish propaganda cannot change the fact that they are terrorists, terrorists who are with Hamas. Even Hamas admits its tunnels are for its terrorists and not for its people," she said.
Bedrosian insists Israel is working in full collaboration and partnership with Trump and his team. Kushner conveyed that details are being worked out for the ISF, but the Israeli spokesperson made one thing clear.
"The prime minister said it today," she observed, "that there will be no Turkish boots on the ground."
As Kushner meets with Israeli officials, there are reports that the U.S. is planning to build a large military base in Israel's Gaza Envelope outside the Gaza Strip. The base, estimated to cost $500 million, would be used by international forces to house troops enforcing the ceasefire. Israel is said to be involved in the planning with the U.S.
Meanwhile, Israelis are noting with interest the resignations of the head of the BBC and the U.K. network's top news executive on Sunday. Their departures occurred after a leaked internal memo revealed that President Trump's speech on January 6th, 2021, was intentionally edited to make it look like he was inciting his supporters to violence.
Nick Szkiler, chairman of Issachar People in the U.K., told CBN News' Raj Nair that the BBC has been a pillar of the broadcasting community and a trusted organization for many years, but that, for decades, it has been biased in its reporting of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
"It’s very clear that there’s been a leftwing agenda and no more, no more pointedly than in the comparison between what’s been broadcast on BBC International News and on BBC Arabic," Szkiler said. "If you compare the way things in Israel were covered on the BBC Arabic Channel with what’s been released for the rest of the world, it’s a stark contrast. And the bias is absolutely clear."
Israel has repeatedly indicated that one of the main fronts of the war it has fought during the last two years was the information war.
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