Syria, Crossroad
Syria is experiencing a difficult crossroad. The last two days has seen another massacre, this time aimed at the Druze community in Suwayda. This event, which is still ongoing, raises some questions when it comes to the new Syrian national project and the promise of Syrian president Ah-Sharaa to protect the minorities of his country. As hundreds of casualties are already reported and the situation looks bleak, just days ago, the picture looked a little different. I was proud to host two brave friends last week , Shadi Martini and Abdulaziz al-Khamis and to speak about the axis of opportunities that lies ahead. Having a Saudi and a Syrian speak at the Knesset was a historic moment and one that gave some hope and optimism about a possible better future assuming we choose to pursue it. We have seen many wars and battles in the last 15 years in the region – and we have seen more here since October 7th. But we have also seen friends who are willing to help us pave a different future and this remains one of the most critical agendas of our time.
I n that spirit of bridge building, I had the chance to sit with Shadi Martini and speak about the journey he and his country experienced in the last 15 years. This is a fascinating story of a brave Syrian patriot who is deeply committed to change the future of his country. This is also a relatively unknown story about Syrian Israeli cooperation that was trigged by a war and that might, at some point, help create a different reality of relations between the two countries.