Al-Sharaa demands Israel withdraw from Syria in UN speech

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Wednesday accused Israel of violating his country's sovereignty and called for Israeli forces to withdraw from Syrian territory to the lines set under a 1974 disengagement agreement.

Speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York, al-Sharaa said Israel had carried out nearly 500 air and artillery strikes and more than 1,200 incursions into Syria since the December 2024 upheaval that ousted former president Bashar al-Assad. He said around 300 people had also been detained.

He said Israel's actions were "reminiscent of an era that we thought was long gone."