Erdogan Says Turkey Will Remain in Syria 'until Syrian People are Free'https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2403251/erdogan-says-turkey-will-remain-syria-until-syrian-people-are-free
Erdogan Says Turkey Will Remain in Syria 'until Syrian People are Free'
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. (Reuters)
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that Turkish forces, which have carried out several incursions into northern Syria since 2016, would remain in the country until Syrians can live in freedom and safety.
“Nowadays they are holding an election, a so-called election,” Erdogan said of a parliamentary election on Sunday in Syria’s government-controlled regions, after nearly a decade of war.
“Until the Syrian people are free, peaceful and safe, we will remain in this country,” he said in a speech in Ankara.
Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa speaks at the Arab Media Summit in Dubai on Tuesday. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa said his country has gone from being a security and political “problem” troubling the region to an economic and strategic opportunity that could contribute to the security of supply chains, energy and trade between East and West.
Speaking at the Arab Media Summit in Dubai on Tuesday, al-Sharaa projected Syria’s economy would reach about $50 billion this year, up from roughly $20 billion in 2024.
He acknowledged that the economic transition requires “shock” decisions, in what appeared to be an implicit reference to measures such as fuel price increases that have triggered protests in several Syrian regions in recent days.
He stressed that his government did not want to pursue a “policy of complaints or promises,” but instead focus on work, with success measured by results felt by Syrians.
Syria is moving away from an economic model marked by heavy bureaucracy, state dominance and corruption toward one giving greater scope to the private sector and investment, he explained.
A sudden transition, however, could cause “a kind of shock”, he added.
The government had studied the experiences of countries that underwent similar transformations and managing the transition required a degree of gradualism alongside decisions that could sometimes be “shocking”, he warned.
Syria’s economy stood at about $60 billion at its prewar peak in 2010 before falling to around $20 billion in 2024. It grew to roughly $32 billion in 2025 and is expected to reach about $50 billion in 2026, before recovering to around its 2010 level in 2027.
Al-Sharaa said ambitions extended beyond a return to prewar levels, with economic programs targeting the possibility of expanding the economy to about $200 billion over the following five to 10 years, provided stability prevailed and the region and world avoided major upheaval.
Regional risks
Regional risks remain among Syria’s biggest challenges, according to al-Sharaa.
The country faces a “heavy legacy resulting from 60 years of destruction and 14 years of continuous war,” he remarked, adding that ending Syria's conflict was not enough to ensure lasting stability without greater regional and strategic security.
“What frightens us most is that wars expand further and further,” he said.
Damascus is working with Arab countries to reduce the impact of wars and mitigate future risks, he added, stressing that Syria could play a pivotal role in strengthening regional stability.
He said the country was undergoing a broad transition involving the rebuilding of state institutions, economic transformation, attracting investment and rehabilitating infrastructure, alongside efforts to consolidate domestic stability and restore its place in its Arab and regional surroundings.
Al-Sharaa described Syria as having gone from “a source of Captagon and human trafficking, and a foothold for spreading conflicts and problems in the region” to a country seeking to become “an area of stability.”
He pointed to growing discussions of its potential role in regional trade, supply-chain and energy security, as well as its position on routes linking East and West.
‘Syria is not a follower’
Turning to foreign policy, al-Sharaa stressed that Damascus sought relations based on “credibility and trust” while preserving the independence of its decision-making.
“Syria does not need to be a follower of any party,” he declared, adding that the country had the civilization, expertise and human resources to make independent decisions while drawing strength from “its brothers and its surroundings.”
Moreover, he stressed that Syria cannot do without its Arab and Islamic surroundings, and relies heavily on Arab states for political support and to benefit from their expertise and development experience.
The country does not want “to start from the zero where these countries began, but from the 100 they have reached,” he revealed.
On international sanctions, he noted that Syria had been among the world’s most heavily sanctioned countries for decades, with the impact extending beyond state institutions to society and the economy.
Generations of Syrians had been unable to engage normally with financial transactions, bank guarantees and the global financial system because of the country’s prolonged isolation, he continued.
He further praised efforts by Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with US President Donald Trump over sanctions, describing their lifting as a historic turning point for his country.
“I believe Syria was born again after the sanctions were lifted,” al-Sharaa said, adding that the main restrictions had been broken and responsibility now lay in adopting the right “policies, procedures and choices” to move the economy and the state forward.
Israel Will ‘Finish Job’ in Gaza and Remove Palestinians, Says Defense Ministerhttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5318859-israel-will-%E2%80%98finish-job%E2%80%99-gaza-and-remove-palestinians-says-defense-minister
People gather as Civil Defense workers attempt to rescue those who are trapped beneath the rubble of a residential building that had been damaged in an earlier Israeli strike during the war and collapsed on Wednesday, in Gaza City, September 16, 2026. (Reuters)
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Israel Will ‘Finish Job’ in Gaza and Remove Palestinians, Says Defense Minister
People gather as Civil Defense workers attempt to rescue those who are trapped beneath the rubble of a residential building that had been damaged in an earlier Israeli strike during the war and collapsed on Wednesday, in Gaza City, September 16, 2026. (Reuters)
Israel's defense minister said Wednesday it was only a matter of time before the country resumes full-scale war in Gaza and moves to force out its two million Palestinians.
Israel Katz, who is known for outspoken remarks, was responding to criticism from another right-wing contender ahead of October 27 elections.
Katz said 70 percent of Gaza had already been emptied of its population in the Israeli offensive launched after the October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.
He said that an October 2025 ceasefire announced by US President Donald Trump had "supreme value for all Israelis" by leading to the return of remaining hostages and ensuring "a commitment by the United States" to disarming Hamas.
"We all understand that this is not going to happen -- and the army is prepared, once given the directive to eliminate Hamas, to finish the job so that we can also implement the migration plan," Katz said in a statement.
He said earlier this month that Israel was ready to remove Palestinians from Gaza by sea and land but was waiting for the United States, which he said was discussing where the two million people would go.
US Ambassador Mike Huckabee has denied any plan to "displace people out of Gaza against their will".
Katz had described the migration plan as voluntary, saying most Palestinians wanted to leave.
Nearly all of Gaza's population has been internally displaced and most of the territory lies in rubble after the war.
The Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023 killed 1,221 people, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures, the deadliest attack ever against Israel.
Gunmen also took 251 hostages to Gaza.
Israel's retaliatory military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 73,700 people, according to the territory's health ministry, which operates under Hamas authority and does not distinguish between combatants and civilians, and whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.
While the 11-month-old ceasefire has reduced the level of violence, Israel has still regularly carried out strikes in Gaza.
A total of 1,375 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire came into effect, according to the Gaza health ministry.
Hamas said in late July that it was ready to disarm, in what Trump hailed as a breakthrough.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the latest stage of the plan and said there would be no Israeli withdrawal from Gaza until Hamas verifiably decommissions all weapons.
Lebanese President Aiming for Achievements in Negotiations, Deals Cautiously with De-Escalation in Southhttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5318852-lebanese-president-aiming-achievements-negotiations-deals-cautiously-de
A handout photo made available by the Lebanese Presidency press office shows Lebanese President Joseph Aoun (4-L) during a visit to southern Lebanon, 12 September 2026. (Lebanese Presidency press office)
Lebanese President Aiming for Achievements in Negotiations, Deals Cautiously with De-Escalation in South
A handout photo made available by the Lebanese Presidency press office shows Lebanese President Joseph Aoun (4-L) during a visit to southern Lebanon, 12 September 2026. (Lebanese Presidency press office)
Lebanese authorities are cautiously approaching Israeli leaks that its forces are going to withdraw from some areas in southern Lebanon. However, the American mediator has not conveyed any confirmed information about this to Beirut.
A senior official Lebanese source said the discrepancy between the political and military powers in Israel about remaining in Lebanon “does not mean things are running smoothly, given the ongoing stalemate on the negotiation track.”
The source explained that Israel's failure to facilitate the negotiation process has downgraded the talks to the ambassador level, as is currently happening in Washington. Consequently, there is no party capable of lending credibility to any contrary indicators on the ground.
Meanwhile, Israeli attacks around the Ali al-Taher region have continued, with decreased intensity, after the detonation of its tunnel network. This coincided with Israeli leaks by Channel 12, which is close to military and security circles, about Tel Aviv's readiness to withdraw toward a “gray line.”
The leaks were followed by Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz saying that the withdrawal from southern Lebanon should be preceded with the disarmament of Hezbollah.
However, the developments on the ground seem to contradict his words. Field sources in the South told Asharq Al-Awsat that Israeli forces have left the Ali al-Taher ridge area and kept their troops at the Beaufort Castle.
The sources said the town of Kfar Tebnit, strategically located between Ali al-Taher and the castle, has also become clear of any Israeli presence. The forces have also completed a military road connecting Beaufort Castle to Israeli positions south of the Litani River, bypassing other Lebanese villages north of the river where Israeli forces are currently present.
The sources go even further, noting that the situation on the ground “does not indicate, as of yet, any Israeli intention for a larger escalation around Nabatieh, judging by the size of the forces Israel is mobilizing in the area and its field operations.”
A picture shows destroyed houses in the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Tebnit on September 11, 2026, following an Israeli demolition on the Ali al-Taher ridge. (AFP)
Ali al-Taher and negotiations
After the Ali al-Taher detonation, Lebanese Army Commander Rodolphe Haykal contacted officials at the US Central Command to declare that the military was ready to deploy in the area, an official Lebanese source told Asharq Al-Awsat.
The Americans then relayed the information to the Israeli Northern Command, which said that it would prefer that the issue be addressed at the next round of political negotiations between Beirut and Tel Aviv, revealed the source.
The talks are set for early October after Lebanese President Joseph Aoun requested from the Americans that they be postponed from mid-September.
The source said he asked for the delay because the Israelis were not receptive to Lebanese demands and due to their military escalation, the latest of which was the detonation at Ali al-Taher.
Aoun demanded a specific agenda that allows for actual progress in the negotiations, because he considers that there is no point in “negotiating merely for a photo-op.”
He revealed that Aoun had instructed Lebanese Ambassador to the US Nada Moawad, who will meet with her Israeli counterpart in Washington on Wednesday, to urge progress in consolidating the ceasefire and completing the release of Lebanese prisoners.
This photograph taken from the southern Lebanese village of al Hanniyeh shows smoke as it rises from the site of an Israeli-controlled explosion in the nearby village of Al-Mansouri on September 6, 2026. (AFP)
Tyre visit
The source said that Aoun’s recent visit to Nabatieh will be followed by one to the coastal city of Tyre.
It said that Aoun was “deeply pained” at the sight of the destruction in Nabatieh despite knowing what to expect. He then urged official circles to intensify their efforts and restore state institutions in the city and other southern regions.
He requested the relevant ministries to intensify their work in the city to support the steadfastness of its residents, who “want nothing but safety, security, and a decent life in their homes.”
Aoun requested the acceleration of the reconstruction process for the government building in the city following the destruction it sustained. He requested speeding up the disbursement of the $3 million allocated by the government for this purpose, out of concern that administrative red tape might delay it longer than necessary, said the source.
Additionally, he requested the Ministry of Finance to allocate a piece of land it owns in the city to rebuild a center for the State Security apparatus, as an alternative to a center that was also destroyed by Israeli airstrikes.
Aoun believes that the return of the state to the South “must be effective, and across all sectors, not just security.”
Ties with Hezbollah remain severed
Ties between Aoun and Hezbollah remain severed as demonstrated by the party boycotting the president’s visit and later slandering it.
The party criticizes Aoun for not being “considerate enough” of the Shiite community, Hezbollah’s main support base, that has paid heavily in the war.
Aoun's relationship with Hezbollah, since he was the army commander, has been based on “advice” and warnings that the party has not heeded. This began with the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation in Gaza in 2023, the party's decision to open a “support front” in solidarity with Hamas a day later and its decision in March to open another front, this time in support of Iran in the US-Israel war against it.
On both occasions, Aoun urged Hezbollah against engaging in the war, but the party ignored him.
On Ali al-Taher, Aoun managed to acquire through US Secretary of State Marco Rubio Israel’s approval that its forces will not advance on it, in exchange for the Lebanese army to deploy there instead. Hezbollah, through a mediator, initially agreed to the proposal, but later announced that neither the Lebanese nor Israeli forces would be allowed to enter the tunnels.
As of yet, Aoun has not understood why Hezbollah would prefer to hand over the position to the Israelis rather than the Lebanese army, knowing that the Lebanese choice would protect Nabatieh and the surrounding areas.
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