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Damascus Replaces Security Chiefs, Including Major General 'Jamil Hassan'

Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad walk in al-Mallah Farms. REUTERS
Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad walk in al-Mallah Farms. REUTERS
    Damascus, Berlin - Asharq Al-Awsat
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Damascus Replaces Security Chiefs, Including Major General 'Jamil Hassan'

Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad walk in al-Mallah Farms. REUTERS
Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad walk in al-Mallah Farms. REUTERS

The Syrian regime replaced on Sunday security chiefs at the directorates of air intelligence, political security, criminal security and state security.

Reports said the main shake-up included the removal of Jamil Hassan, who headed the Syrian Air Force Intelligence Directorate since 2009 and was dubbed as the “godfather of barrels.”

Replacing Hassan, the Syrian regime appointed Maj. Gen. Ghassan Ismail, who was his deputy.

The Assad regime rarely issues official reports about decisions related to changes of military chiefs and intelligence apparatuses, only sending internal memos concerning those appointments, which are later published by news pages close to the regime.

Hassan was one of the most important officers in Syria, accused of committing a range of crimes, including the use of barrel bombings.

Last March, the United States has asked Lebanon to extradite the chief of Syria's Air Force Intelligence Directorate to Germany.

A State Department statement said Hassan is “notorious for his alleged involvement in the extensive use of torture in Syrian detention centers. The German federal prosecutor issued an arrest warrant against the general in June 2018 for committing crimes against humanity based on a complaint filed by Syrian refugees residing in Germany.”

Separately, the US special representative on Syria, James Jeffrey pushed Germany on Sunday to ramp up its military involvement in the fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria militant group.

Jeffrey called on Germany to send military trainers, logistics specialists and technicians to help the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the fight against ISIS in northern Syria as Washington looks to withdraw from the region.

"We want ground troops from Germany to partially replace our soldiers," Jeffrey said in an interview with the German Deutsche Presse-Agentur news agency and the weekly Welt am Sonntag newspaper.

Meanwhile, opposition sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Tanf base in the Syrian-Iraqi-Jordanian corner has currently opened its doors for accepting affiliations from residents.

The sources said that affiliates would be trained in Jordanian camps.

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Arab World

Shaken by Iran War, EU Seeks Larger Voice on Middle East

Attendees pose for a family photo during a summit of the European Union and regional partners' leaders in Nicosia, Cyprus, April 24, 2026. (Reuters)
Attendees pose for a family photo during a summit of the European Union and regional partners' leaders in Nicosia, Cyprus, April 24, 2026. (Reuters)
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Shaken by Iran War, EU Seeks Larger Voice on Middle East

Attendees pose for a family photo during a summit of the European Union and regional partners' leaders in Nicosia, Cyprus, April 24, 2026. (Reuters)
Attendees pose for a family photo during a summit of the European Union and regional partners' leaders in Nicosia, Cyprus, April 24, 2026. (Reuters)

EU leaders vowed to boost security and economic ties with Middle East partners and push for a diplomatic end to the Iran war, after talks in Cyprus focusing on the fallout from the conflict.

Leaders from Lebanon, Egypt, Syria and Jordan as well as the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council, were in Nicosia to meet their European Union counterparts on the sidelines of an EU summit.

"The current situation clearly underscores how closely Europe's security is linked with that of the Middle East, and how vital our cooperation on security and defense has become," European Council president Antonio Costa told a press conference after the talks.

US-Israeli strikes on Iran and Tehran's retaliation, including the direct targeting of US allies in the Gulf, have rattled the global economy, with the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz sending oil prices soaring and crimping supply of jet fuel in Europe.

"The Strait of Hormuz must immediately reopen without restrictions and without tolling, in full respect of international law and the principle of freedom of navigation. This is vital for the entire world," Costa said.

"Diplomacy is the only sustainable way forwards, and European Union is ready to contribute to all ongoing efforts," he added.

The meeting came after Trump indefinitely extended the ceasefire with Iran this week, but push for fresh peace talks in Pakistan has stalled in recent days.

An extension of a shaky truce between Israel and Lebanon has also been agreed on -- but European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said that was "not enough", calling for a permanent settlement.

"You cannot have stability in the Middle East or the Gulf while Lebanon is in flames," she said. "A temporary pause is not enough".

The EU has largely remained on the sidelines in the Middle East war despite US President Donald Trump lashing out at what he says is Europe's lack of support for Washington's efforts to contain Iran.

French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters that "Europe must do even more" to help end the crisis.

"It is in everyone's interest for stability to return as soon as possible and for the world's economies to be reassured," Macron said, in stark contrast to Trump who said the United States had "all the time in the World".

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said works was under way to boost economic, trade and political ties with Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and Gulf nations and proposed the partnership broadens to defense matters.

"We could consider expanding the scope of missions like Operation Aspides evolving from mere protection to a sophisticated joint maritime coordination," she said without providing further details.

Aspides is the EU's naval mission in the Red Sea, launched in 2024 to prevent attacks on trade vessels by Iran-backed Houthi rebel forces.

"The threat of mass proliferation of drones and missiles is sadly a shared reality. We should set up a structural cooperation of scaling up defense production," von der Leyen added.

Arab World

Israel PM Says Hezbollah Trying to ‘Sabotage’ Peace Efforts with Lebanon

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a ceremony commemorating Israel's Remembrance Day for fallen soldiers, or Yom HaZikaron, at the Military Cemetery on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, Tuesday April 21, 2026. (Ilia Yefimovich/Pool Photo via AP)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a ceremony commemorating Israel's Remembrance Day for fallen soldiers, or Yom HaZikaron, at the Military Cemetery on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, Tuesday April 21, 2026. (Ilia Yefimovich/Pool Photo via AP)
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Israel PM Says Hezbollah Trying to ‘Sabotage’ Peace Efforts with Lebanon

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a ceremony commemorating Israel's Remembrance Day for fallen soldiers, or Yom HaZikaron, at the Military Cemetery on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, Tuesday April 21, 2026. (Ilia Yefimovich/Pool Photo via AP)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a ceremony commemorating Israel's Remembrance Day for fallen soldiers, or Yom HaZikaron, at the Military Cemetery on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, Tuesday April 21, 2026. (Ilia Yefimovich/Pool Photo via AP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hezbollah on Friday of trying to "sabotage" efforts to reach a peace agreement with Lebanon.

"We have started a process to reach a historic peace between Israel and Lebanon, and it's clear to us that Hezbollah is trying to sabotage this," he said in his first remarks after a ceasefire with Lebanon was extended.

The comments came as the Israeli military said it struck Hezbollah targets in a south Lebanon village in response to a "ceasefire violation", after earlier warning residents to evacuate the community.

"A short while ago, the army struck military structures in the area of Deir Aames, from which rockets were launched toward the town of Shtula in Israel yesterday," it said.

"The structures that were targeted were used by the Hezbollah terrorist organization to advance terrorist activities against soldiers and the State of Israel," it added.

The military's Arabic-language spokesman, Avichay Adraee, had earlier warned residents of Deir Aames to "evacuate your homes immediately and move at least 1,000 meters outside the area".

"Due to Hezbollah's terrorist activity, the army is conducting targeted operations in the area," he said on X.

Deir Aames is located north of the so-called "Yellow Line" in Lebanon, behind which Israeli forces are operating despite the ceasefire.

On Iran, Netanyahu said he "had an excellent conversation" with US President Donald Trump, without specifying when the pair spoke.

"He is putting very strong pressure on Iran, both economically and militarily. We are working in full cooperation," he added.

Arab World

Israeli Strike Kills Three in Gaza, Medics Say

Members of civil defense personnel use a fire hose at the site of an Israeli airstrike on a car in the central Gaza Strip, April 23, 2026. (Reuters)
Members of civil defense personnel use a fire hose at the site of an Israeli airstrike on a car in the central Gaza Strip, April 23, 2026. (Reuters)
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Israeli Strike Kills Three in Gaza, Medics Say

Members of civil defense personnel use a fire hose at the site of an Israeli airstrike on a car in the central Gaza Strip, April 23, 2026. (Reuters)
Members of civil defense personnel use a fire hose at the site of an Israeli airstrike on a car in the central Gaza Strip, April 23, 2026. (Reuters)

An Israeli strike killed at least three in Gaza on Friday, according to Palestinian health officials.

The strike hit a crowded area in Gaza City near an area where local police are stationed to guard a bank, said the medics and eyewitnesses.

Gaza's interior ministry said ‌that the strike ‌had killed two policemen and ‌wounded ⁠two others, in ⁠a statement on Friday.

Reuters has previously reported that Israel has heightened its attacks on Gaza's Hamas-run police force that the group has used to reestablish governance in the areas it controls ⁠in the strip.

It was not immediately ‌clear whether ‌any of Gaza's police force had been killed in ‌the attack.

The Israeli military did not ‌immediately respond to a request for comment on the incident.

Violence in Gaza has persisted despite the October 2025 ceasefire, with Israel conducting ‌near-daily attacks on Palestinians.

At least 790 Palestinians have been killed since ⁠the ceasefire ⁠deal took effect, according to local medics, while Israel says gunmen have killed four of its soldiers.

Israel and Hamas have exchanged blame for ceasefire violations.

More than 72,000 Gazans have been killed since the war started in October 2023, most of them civilians, according to Gaza health authorities.

Hamas' October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies.