Guterres in Syria for first official visit by a UN chief in 17 years

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appealed to the international community to support the people of Syria and criticised Israel’s actions in the country’s south as he kicked off his first visit to the Arab nation as the UN chief, nearly two years after the fall of Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad.

Guterres arrived on Saturday morning at Damascus international airport, where he and his delegation were met by Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, Syria’s state news agency reported.

Shortly after his arrival, Guterres held talks with Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, before touring the old quarter of Damascus and the famous Umayyad Mosque. The UN chief also visited the notorious Sednaya military prison, a sprawling complex just north of Damascus that has become synonymous with some of the worst atrocities committed under the al-Assad family’s rule.

The visit comes as Syria is trying to recover from the civil war that broke out in March 2011 and killed nearly half a million people, causing widespread destruction that will cost tens of billions of dollars to rebuild.

The UN “stands with Syria at this pivotal moment”, Guterres said in a post on X after landing in Damascus. “I appeal to the international community to spare no effort to support the people of Syria as well,” he added.

A statement from al-Sharaa’s office said his meeting with the UN chief addressed strengthening cooperation between Syria and the UN “in the humanitarian and development fields”.

Meanwhile, al-Shaibani called for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from a UN-patrolled buffer zone on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, where they deployed in 2024 after the ouster of al-Assad.

“We underscore the importance of fully respecting Syria’s sovereignty, independence, unity, and territorial integrity,” Guterres told a news conference on Saturday.

“Violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity are unacceptable and must cease. What is happening in the region around the Golan Heights is totally unacceptable,” he said, adding: “I’d like to remind the international community that the Golan Heights are Syrian territory.”

After al-Assad’s overthrow, Israel sent troops into the buffer zone that separated Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights for decades, and has carried out strikes and repeated incursions deeper into Syrian territory.

Israeli officials say they intend to keep forces in a “security zone” in southern Syria.

Al-Shibani said there can be no regional peace amid the continuation of Israeli military operations and occupation that form a “direct threat to the security of the region”.

After taking power, al-Sharaa – a former al-Qaeda commander who was under UN Security Council sanctions until last year – said he had no desire for a conflict with Israel. But Israeli strikes on Syrian military facilities and periodic incursions into villages outside the buffer zone have sometimes led to violent confrontations with residents.

‘Stable, more inclusive Syria’

The UN chief’s visit is the first since 2009, before the country’s bloody 14-year civil war broke out.

It is yet another diplomatic milestone for al-Sharaa, who has sought to rebuild international ties since he took power in 2024.

Ahead of the visit, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said Guterres planned to highlight that Syria has an opportunity to “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”.

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 expected to address Syria’s new parliament on Monday.

Guterres will also hold talks with government officials and representatives of Syrian civil society.

The visit will include a field tour to inspect the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), stationed in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights, as part of efforts to monitor compliance with the 1974 disengagement agreement between Syria and Israel.

The visit also comes 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 al-Assad was toppled.

Syrian authorities have said they have uncovered the cell responsible for the bombings, arresting suspects affiliated with the ISIL (ISIS) group.