U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack said the United States is “deeply concerned” that Israeli airstrikes on Abu al-Duhur Airbase in Syria “constitute an unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability.”

Barrack noted that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has not “adopted a predatory posture nor maintained proxy forces” and has “repeatedly indicated a preference for de-escalation with Israel.” He added that the U.S. “continues to believe that restraint and engagement offer the more constructive course,” urging all parties “to prioritize logical discourse over further military incidents.”

In a statement to Fox News, a senior Israeli official said “highly sensitive intelligence was shared with the United States in advance” of the strike on the air base. “Al-Sharaa understands that he cannot operate like the previous Syrian regime, which maintained proxy forces. It’s possible that he didn’t understand what was going on, or didn’t know,” the official said.

Al-Sharaa, formerly the head of Al Qaeda’s affiliate group in Syria, became the country’s new leader in January 2025 after leading rebel forces that ousted Bashar al-Assad. President Donald Trump has expressed strong support for al-Sharaa’s government, including by lifting broad economic sanctions on Syria in late June.