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After Israeli Attack, Source Denies Hamas Presence in Syria

The police headquarters in the Quneitra province. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The police headquarters in the Quneitra province. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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After Israeli Attack, Source Denies Hamas Presence in Syria

The police headquarters in the Quneitra province. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The police headquarters in the Quneitra province. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Israeli forces carried out early on Sunday an incursion inside Quneitra in southern Syria towards a position previously held by the ousted regime.

Syrian media said the forces approached the outskirts of the village of Ain al-Nourieh and destroyed a military position used by the regime.

Earlier this month, Israeli forces withdrew from buildings they had held in Quneitra after holding them for over 40 days.

Sources said the troops had destroyed furniture, vehicles and computers, as well as official documents and files related to the residents of Quneitra.

On Saturday, the Israeli army announced that it had destroyed a Hamas arms depot in the Dier al-Ali area in Syria’s Kiswa region in the Damascus countryside.

The military said the weapons were being stored to be used in terrorist attacks against Israel.

“Palestinian organizations, led by Hamas, were using Syrian territories to carry out terrorist acts at Iran’s orders,” it claimed.

A source close to Hamas denied to Asharq Al-Awsat that the Palestinian movement had any military presence in Syria.

Hamas left Syria in the early days of the Syria conflict, which erupted in 2011, it clarified.

Hamas officials may have visited members of the ousted regime since then, but the movement has no presence there “in any way shape or form.”

“Israel is lying and its attacks targeted former regime positions,” it stressed.

A local source told Suwayda 24 that the Israeli strike on Saturday targeted a depot the Military Operations Command had used to store weapons collected from the former regime.

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Syria Is at a Crossroads: It Can Return to Violence or Transition to Peace, Says UN Envoy 

A member of Syria's security forces mans a gun in the back of a truck during the funeral of three people killed in Israeli strikes a day earlier, in the southern town of Daraa on March 18, 2025. (AFP)
A member of Syria's security forces mans a gun in the back of a truck during the funeral of three people killed in Israeli strikes a day earlier, in the southern town of Daraa on March 18, 2025. (AFP)
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Syria Is at a Crossroads: It Can Return to Violence or Transition to Peace, Says UN Envoy 

A member of Syria's security forces mans a gun in the back of a truck during the funeral of three people killed in Israeli strikes a day earlier, in the southern town of Daraa on March 18, 2025. (AFP)
A member of Syria's security forces mans a gun in the back of a truck during the funeral of three people killed in Israeli strikes a day earlier, in the southern town of Daraa on March 18, 2025. (AFP)

Three months following the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad, Syria is at a crossroads, the top UN envoy for the country said Tuesday.

Geir Pedersen told the UN Security Council that Syria can return to violence or start an inclusive transition and end decades of conflict.

He said the road back to conflict, fragmentation and violations of Syrian sovereignty by external powers "must not come to pass." The other road, which would restore Syria’s sovereignty and regional security, is "viable," but "requires the right Syrian decisions" and international support, Pedersen said.

Syria’s civil war had gone on for 13 years when a lightning insurgency led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group (HTS) overthrew Assad in December, ending his family’s more than 50-year rule.

Former HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa was announced as the country’s interim president after a meeting of armed groups that took part in the offensive.

Pedersen spoke weeks after clashes between Sharaa's security forces and armed groups loyal to Assad - sparked by an ambush by regime remnants on the security forces - spiraled into sectarian revenge attacks that killed scores of civilians, most of them Alawites, a minority sect to which Assad belongs. It was the worst violence since December.

Pedersen told the council that while the situation was "comparatively calmed" after several days, the UN continues to receive reports "of harassment and intimidation, including with heavy sectarian overtones."

He said the interim authorities announced an independent investigation. Pedersen said he stressed that it must be transparent, in line with international standards, and its findings made public.

The UN special envoy, who will be returning to Damascus shortly, highlighted several priority areas for action and attention.

The latest violence, he said, "laid bare the urgent need for credible and efficient accountability for crimes" committed over decades.

He said the UN and the international community will be watching whether the soon-to-be-announced transitional government and transitional legislative council reflect Syria’s diversity and include both men and women.

Pedersen said his team was consulted on a temporary constitution and gave advice on international best practices and norms. "Some of this was taken on board, some was not," he said.

In mid-March, Sharaa signed a temporary constitution that promises to protect the rights of all Syrians for five years during a transitional phase.

"Some Syrians have commended the effort to fill the constitutional vacuum, and noted the incorporation of international human rights norms," Pedersen said. "But others have expressed reservations about the non-transparent process of its drafting and the substance itself — particularly a very strong presidency with unclear checks and balances between state powers and ambiguity regarding the transition steps."

Pedersen also cited other issues that demand action, including dealing with armed groups and foreign fighters, and reviving the economy.