On first visit to Syria in 17 years, UN chief meets Sharaa

Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa receives UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at presidential palace.—AFP

• Guterres pledges support for Syria’s reconstruction; backs Syria’s request for EU support; calls situation in Golan Heights ‘totally unacceptable’
• Damascus demands Israeli withdrawal from ‘buffer zone’

DAMASCUS: UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres pledged help for Syrian reconstruction on Saturday during the first visit to Damascus by a serving United Nations chief since 2009, before the start of a civil war that killed hundreds of thousands and displaced millions.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa received Guterres at the presidential palace in Damascus, state news agency SANA said, without providing further details.

“No country emerges from a very severe conflict and rebuilds itself on its own,” Guterres said after the talks with Sharaa at a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani.

“We must help Syria in its determination and resolve to do so,” Guterres added.

Shaibani reiterated Syria’s request for more support from the international community, especially the European Union.

He said Guterres’ talks with Sharaa which Shaibani also attended had focused on increasing UN support for reconstruction and a government plan to close displacement camps.

Guterres also said the situation around Syria’s Golan Heights was unacceptable, as the Syrian foreign minister urged Israeli forces to withdraw from a UN-patrolled buffer zone where they deployed in 2024.

“What is happening in the region around the Golan Heights is totally unacceptable,” Guterres added. Shaibani called for an “immediate and unconditional Israeli withdrawal” from the area where they had advanced.

Guterres’ visit is another milestone for Syria since rebels ousted President Bashar al-Assad in late 2024, ending the war that began in 2011 and launching a transitional period.

At the time, Guterres described “the end of the Syrian dictatorship” under Assad as a sign of hope for the region. In a post on X on Saturday for what he described as a “visit of solidarity”, Guterres said: “The United Nations stands with Syria at this pivotal moment.” Guterres will also meet other government officials and representatives of Syrian civil society and is expected to address the country’s parliament on Monday, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said earlier this week.

He will underline that the country has an opportunity “not only to recover from conflict, but also to lay the foundations for a future for Syria that will be more stable, more inclusive, and more prosperous for all Syrians”, Dujarric said.

Return to global stage

Guterres is expected to be in Damascus for several days, but the full schedule of his visit has not been released by his office. He is visiting just weeks after two bombs exploded near a hotel in Damascus where French President Emmanuel Macron spent the night, overshadowing the first visit to Syria by a European Union head of state since Assad was toppled.

Sharaa’s government is seeking to rebuild Syria’s international ties and economy after nearly 14 years of war and decades of isolation under the Assad family’s rule.

Sharaa, who broke ties with al Qaeda in 2016, led an alliance of rebel factions that ousted Assad in a lightning offensive in December 2024. Since taking power, his government has sought to re-establish Syria’s diplomatic ties to expand beyond Assad’s longtime allies, Russia and Iran.

Last year, Sharaa became the first Syrian president since 1967 to take part in the UN General Assembly in New York. The US has lifted most sanctions on Syria and President Donald Trump informed Sharaa earlier this month that he intended to remove Syria from Washington’s list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Guterres is also expected during his trip to visit a UN peacekeeping force that has maintained a buffer zone between Israeli and Syrian forces for decades, Dujarric said.

Israeli troops have occupied new areas in southern Syria after Assad was ousted. Dama­scus has demanded they withdraw and return to a 1974 disengagement agreement.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2026 ...