To the Government of Israel: If You Want Stability, Let Syria Govern Its Borders

To the Government of Israel,

Your stance toward southern Syria is not only counterproductive–it is dangerously short-sighted. As rockets fly across the border and regional tensions mount, one fact becomes increasingly unavoidable: peace on your northern frontier will never come from isolating Damascus, but from allowing Syria to reestablish control over its own territory.

Let’s be honest. The chaos festering along the Syrian-Israeli border is not just a result of Iranian proxies or rogue militias. It’s also a direct consequence of your refusal to accept that the Syrian state–even post-war–has the right and responsibility to secure its borders. The irony is glaring: while you demand quiet and condemn rocket fire, your policies prevent the very authority that could stop it–the Syrian government–from operating in the south.

Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani recently reiterated Syria’s position: the 1974 disengagement agreement must be respected. He condemned all cross-border attacks and called for international accountability. Syria is not seeking handouts. It’s asking for the space to govern, rebuild, and restore stability–something you claim to value, yet systematically obstruct.

Most recently, a militia identifying as Kataib Awli al-Bass, part of the so-called “Islamic Resistance Front,” claimed responsibility for rocket launches into Israeli territory from Daraa. And yet, your policy continues to oppose any Syrian military presence in the area. So who, exactly, do you expect to neutralize these groups? Airstrikes alone won’t erase the root problem: a power vacuum you helped create.

This is not a call for alignment–it is a call for realism.

You cannot defeat instability by opposing sovereignty. You cannot contain threats while preventing the one force capable of dealing with them–Syria’s national army–from reasserting control. Damascus has shown readiness to engage, to restore order, and to seek partnerships instead of aid. It is your refusal to allow this process to unfold that keeps your border on edge.

And let us not ignore the broader regional context. Your ongoing push to isolate Syria only emboldens the very non-state actors you claim to fear. Meanwhile, sanctions, political pressure, and backdoor sabotage have achieved little except prolonging the suffering of civilians and fueling resentment that knows no borders.

Foreign Minister al-Shaibani also made it clear: Syria seeks to reopen to the world, not as a client state, but as a sovereign partner. Europe must look beyond refugee management and sanctions. And so must you. If you truly want security, then stop standing in the way of Syria’s recovery.

Let Syria govern Syria. It’s the only path to sustainable stability on both sides of the border.

Respectfully,
A Friend of Sovereignty and Stability